Prophecy
by Zerodius
Summary: Error is in the nature of all souls. Revelations have the power to enlighten and doom alike...
1. Prophecy

OFF: Finally, after much, much time spent working, my newest Spyro fic is ready for posting! This is the prologue, out of nine chapters.

This fic take place in the Spyro 6 & beyond-verse (A New Beginning) and doesn't take into account the older games. This fic is an alternate sequel to A New Beginning and thus, conflict with The Eternal Night (the official sequel). Keep this in mind.

Note that it's noted PG-13 due to violence.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Prologue: Prophecy**

Error is in the nature of all souls. Revelations have the power to enlighten and doom alike...

* * *

In a world beyond the known Realms, near the edges of Reality and Perceptions, a place bound in fate and prophecies... 

Three months have passed since the sealed gate of Convexity, which had held back the Forces of Darkness, was opened by the possessed dragon hatchling, Cynder.

From the depths of the Dark Realm, ancient demons and horrific experiments alike emerged to join the legions of shadows and shattered souls that serve the deepest of all darkness, the Dark Master.

To oppose the overwhelming flood of monstrosities, one warrior.

Chosen by Fate, a sole dragon, the dragon chosen by the Prophecies...

Every ten generations, an unique dragon would be born... one with an unnatural color for its scales: purple.

Such is what the Prophecies say...

* * *

Through the skies, the grim machine flew through effortlessly, massive engines of unknown technology spewing a trail of fire and smoke behind the mechanical monstrosity as it flew toward its intended destination and target, the Dragon Temple. 

The Sign of Ruin, the demonic metal ship that announced the end. Within was a force that would annihilate the last few survivors of dragonkind... and even if it still didn't accomplish its mission, the machine had a legion of monsters, a thick veil of darkness following it.

This was the last chance for dragonkind. Although the chances of survival were nigh, it would be better to try and weather the endless flood of dark beings than to be obliterated by the force within the metal behemoth.

Thus, so it began.

BOOOOM!

The deck of the metallic ship shook and the vile gorilla-like creatures within, Dark Ones, begun to panic.

"Damage on left side of the hull!" screamed one of the small monkey-like monsters.

"What was that? What hit us?" demanded the largest, meanest of the Dark Ones.

"I... I don't know! It was some kind of purple comet with a small yellow light spinning around it!" replied back the smaller Dark One.

The captain of the ship muttered under his breath. He had come.

* * *

Fwooosh! 

"AAAAARG!" screamed the poor Dark One in pure, raw pain as his fur burnt away, half of his face melting away under the intense heat of the flames consuming him.

The creature didn't even have the time to move that a sharp blow separated the disfigured head from the shoulders, sending the whole thing slamming into the wall and painting the metallic red surface with an even redder taint of red.

Moving at lightning-quick speed, the yellow light hovered above one head for a second before a purple clawed hand swiped at it, slicing it neatly. The light then followed, almost jumping to another Dark One's head, followed by a set of four purple paws slamming violently in the creature's chest.

Slicing, bashing, slashing, clawing, smashing, and kicking about, Spyro fought as hard as he could, cutting himself a path through the endless flood of foes, Sparx constantly flying about, scanning foes and showing to his best friend those whose guard was down.

Spyro didn't feel like it was going too well. Although he was rather proud of how he had used his powers in such an inventive way, using that newest ability of his to shroud himself in a given element to send himself soaring through the air like a living missile, fact is, it still ended up tiring him... and considering that the flood of enemies is probably not going to be dying down, it's bad news for him.

But then, did he really have a choice? He barely had the time to recover from that fight with Cynder, four months ago, that he was now on duty once again, facing off legion after legion of foes.

Four months... four months of pure hell. Why did the Dark Ones try so hard? The dragon specie was almost extinct, only him, Cynder, and the Guardians remaining! Why was the Dark Master so hellbent on destroying his specie? He basically owned the world already! Couldn't he just, you know, stop sending those stupid gorillas after him and leave him and the others alone? After all, why should he feel threatened so much by a little hatchling such as he... especially if he was soooo god-like and all?

But then, the young dragon didn't have much time for thought lately. Ever since, it had been nothing but fighting with very brief moments of training when he was at the temple.

How did he long to be given a moment of respite. Just a moment to sit down, relax, and have a breather... maybe even playing, asking questions, getting to know the Guardians and Cynder? Cynder... he barely had any time to speak to her since he saved her. He had been so busy and well... all he has been doing is training and fighting. No hatchling should go through this... but then, Cynder wasn't like him and the Guardians are old and tired...

So, here he is, fighting for his life desperately. Sure, he had been trained and all... but nothing could really prepare you for, you know, a BILLION baddies all charging at you at the same time?

The so-called ancestors, if they really do exist, they better take into account that he's probably the only warrior, and a hatchling at that, to face a few thousands Dark Ones by itself and actually live through it.

But then, if the ancestors have any kind of kindness in them, they will have mercy upon him and let him to get some shuteye or something. His paws have been killing him for, how long now? Days? Weeks? Three months? So much fighting... when will it end?

"LOOK OUT!"

His eyes widened and he yelped, barely dodging the barrage of sharp and pointy objects that were directed at various points of his body, all of them missing barely. He had no time to recover however for already, a few dozens swords were being swung all coming from potentially lethal angles.

This was not going well at all. He should focus, focus! ...but then, that's what he has been doing for weeks.

Why is he doing this again?

Why is putting his life on the line like this?

Because he has no choice. Because this is all he knows. Because...

...who is he kidding?

He chose to put his life on the line. He's the one who followed that big red dragon on day one when it told him itself that it was insanity and that he would be doomed to try anything.

Yet, he insisted. He wanted to try. He wanted to do his best. He wanted to act and to change things.

So young... a small, little defenseless purple dragon hatchling. So small, so harmless... Who would have suspected he was destined to anything of importance? ...especially considering his rather disproportional limbs, underdeveloped wings, and that larger, twitchy left eye? Not only was he a small child but he was also a runt. Oh my...

...and now, here he is.

Should he feel regret? Should he feel fear?

He's a kid stuck in a conflict definitely not meant for hatchlings, one that left an entire army of adult, well-trained warriors powerless, leading all of them to their dooms. The temptation of giving up, of giving in to fear and despair is strong...

But then... he made it here. He made it this far. With only Sparx at his side. They, the harmless little runt and the bad-mouthed mosquito, managed to make it this far. They managed to drive away the Dark Master's forces countless times, foil his best generals, and even cast down and free Cynder, the Dark Master's very second-in-command. They had succeeded to do what an entire army of dragon warriors died trying to achieve.

Why did they do it?

Destiny? Honor?

Frankly, the words were beautiful... but it was not what motivated him. In truth, he cared about it as much as Sparx did, which is very little if at all.

However... when he see the Guardians' faces when he returns to them whole, the expression of the different tribes and species seeing the darkness leave their lands, Cynder's smile and gratitude after saving her... Truly, it was what made it worthwhile.

He couldn't stand still and let the Dark Master cause chaos not because it was his fate or because of any misplaced pride. He did it because that the Dark Master brought pain to the world and that he wanted to protect everyone and everything from his corrosive, vile power.

Yeah, Sparx taunted him about it. Savior boy, hero wannabe. Maybe it's true... but well, he lives for it. It is his purpose. It is his reason to fight. He shall never give up because people depend on him and that he shall not let anyone down.

Such is his desire. To see the Dark Master defeated so that no more pain might befall the world.

Looking before him, the flood of monsters. Surrounding him, from all sides, their faces distorted in a mix of rage, sadistic anticipation, and just plain insanity. They inspired him with disgust and not because they were ugly, although they truly were ugly, but because that those were faces of beings who cared not for life and saw everything with contempt. Those beings are an offense to all things, mock-ups of life spawned from the twisted imagination of the Dark Master.

Those faces taunted him, inspiring him with righteous fury. He shall sweep upon them all, even if he's outnumbered, even if he's just a kid! He feels the power and he shall unleash it. They shall taste their own medicine, they shall face his wrath for pursuing their demented dreams of world destruction!

All of the foes stuck their swords, spears, and various other tools of destruction toward him. They inspired no fear upon him.

He charged toward them.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing smart guy?" asked quickly the dragonfly, nervousism and worry betraying his feelings.

"Cutting my way through!" replied back the purple dragon, a smirk coming to him.

The foes' garbled taunts grew louder as the circle tightened. He quickened his pace, intend on meeting them head on. He had noticed that primate holding his spear a bit more weakly than the others and he knew what he had to do...

"Man, you're insane!" said the dragonfly, rolling his eyes as he went to follow.

"Yep! Absolutely!" maybe he truly is insane after all... but well, only makes life more fun!

The foes stuck their weapons out like a compact wall of spikes, not leaving a single hole, waiting for the dragon to impale itself upon it.

CLANG!

...but it did not happen. Changing his trajectory at the last second, Spyro spun around and whipped one of the foes in the face. A clear cut that sliced the face wide open, causing the creature to lose grip over its spear and scream... and as it did so, it swung its spear around, smashing it into a nearby fellow soldier. The impact caused a chain reaction, causing the foes to collapse on top of each others like a bunch of cards.

"That's our cue! RUN!" Spyro's smirk widened as a response to Sparx as both of them charged with as much speed as they could muster, the road now clear.

The voices of the foes seemingly merged into one huge roar of anger as they all tried to give pursuit... but they had formed such a tight circle around Spyro that now that he was escaping, the monkeys were all running into each others as they tried to give chase. Soon enough, the foes formed a huge mess of bodies on the floor as they knocked each others out in their mad attempts to give chase. They will be back... but Spyro and Sparx will be far by then.

Racing through the corridors, Spyro's smile widened and soon, Sparx grinned as well, giving his adoptive brother a thumbs-up.

"Hey! Made it! That was cool, dude!" said the insect.

"Not that much, really! I mean, they all ran into each others the second we broke their ranks!" replied the dragon, smiling.

* * *

Running as fast as he could, Spyro remained focused, his sight locked on his target. He didn't know much of flying ships and other complicated machines... 

...but he knew that this thing had a core of sorts and that he had to destroy it. Only by destroying the mechanical heart of the Sign of Ruin will he stop the massive metal behemoth and prevent the destruction of the Dragon Temple.

Thus, he ran, totally focused.

The purple dragon and his dragonfly friend seemed to be in a kind of trance as they ran. As childish and chaotic as they were at times, at this moment, it was obvious that there was more to the two young beings, that they indeed were more than just children and had went through such things before.

A purple thunderbolt... such was what the foes sometimes whispered among themselves. Frail, rather weak, a bit disformed... Spyro was obviously a pushover and yet, the Dark Ones' swords and spears only struck air as the reptile and his insect friend effortlessly dodged them, not even slowing down, barely noticing them, as if the Dark Ones were not even trying.

Heck, the two could even afford to let their guard drop a few times, throwing a nasty comment or taunt at the Dark Ones and each others as they flew through. To them, the Dark Ones were nothing.

Spyro truly was the Dragon of Prophecy. There was no doubt in the minds of the Dark Ones. No other being could. They were feared, experienced soldiers, they had slayed countless dragons, gigantic ones at that! ...yet, they were nothing but mere insects compared to Spyro. Although the purple one was eye-to-eye with the smallest of them, he actually stood tall above all of them on the battlefield, like an unstoppable giant.

No one had been able to stop him. The Ice King, the horrific half-dead monstrosity that had been serving the Dark Master since times immemorial had been unable to do anything, his overwhelming ice attacks striking only air. The famed Conductor, a small but clever high-ranked general, couldn't even catch the purple pest once no matter what kind of machine he thrown at him; even the almighty Steam, which had been feared over the world for its destructive power and speed, couldn't stop him. Heck, even the almighty Cynder herself, the Dark Master's very second-in-command, the one who brought down almost single-handily the dragon specie on its knees, didn't stand a chance!

It was a miracle the plan had not been thrown into jeopardy considering the force they were facing and even now, many were afraid, doubting that the Sign of Ruin would arrive at destination as planned. Was their streak of luck going to run out, will the infernal hatchling crash their plans and make the Dark Master's master plan fall apart after countless years of hard work?

No! Definitely no! The Sign of Ruin is the instrument of destruction that shall terminate the last dragons, just as the Dark Master foresaw it! The Prophecy is false! Spyro will not stop the Sign of Ruin!

...and the captain was going to make sure that the Sign of Ruin will fire its cannon at the Dragon Temple!

"To all crew! This is your captain!" yelled the elderly Dark One from his seat on the main deck, all of the other Dark Ones stopping what they were doing and activating the flying ship's communications systems.

"This is the decisive strike against the dragons! We are on the very verge of ultimate victory! The Dark Master shall dominate this world! The Prophecy is false! ...and we shall certainly not allow a little dragon hatchling and his stupid insect partner to bully us anymore! All crew not manning the cannon and vital systems, go to the engines room! Activate the Sheepaminator! Protect the core! Eliminate those vermins, once and for all!"

As the captain's orders echoed through the entire ship, Spyro noticed how he no longer had to dodge anything, his foes indeed obeying their orders. Sparx rose an eyebrow, turning his attention to his friend.

"Sheepaminator? Sounds rather... lame! This is supposed to be the Dark Master's so-called ultimate weapon and the best thing he can find to protect it is a "Sheepaminator"? Sheesh!" Sparx was right. It did sound weird that the Dark Master's final weapon 's final defense would be something called the "Sheepaminator". Doesn't sound very menacing nor scary, that's for sure!

"Yeah! They should have definitely found a better name for it! I mean... that's their final defense, probably even the final battle... and the foes throw something at us named after a sheep. I think they ran out of ideas for names, frankly," replied the dragon, smiling as he found himself amused by it all.

So ironic that he could find the time and will to smile when he was probably charging toward death...

Then, finally, running through, the two saw a blinding red light beyond the hall, temperature rising. The core was just ahead...

* * *

CLANG! 

Spyro landed on the metallic floor of the humongous engine room, finally stopping. Breathing heavily as he recovered from so much running, the dragon looked around. The room was so gigantic one could think he had emerged in another world, a metal horizon stretching endlessly before him.

It was quite an incredible sight and the two were in awe... although also creeped out at the same time. Although the place wasn't creepy like, say, Concurrent Skies or Convexity had been, fact remained, it was a gigantic room of pure metal that seemed to stretch into the infinite.

...and then, both of them saw it.

"Whoa. I'm speechless." said Sparx and for once, he truly found nothing else to say as Spyro's jaw hanged there, the dragon unable to close his mouth as he stood there, wide-eyed.

Before the two was the most gigantic, incredible machine they had ever seen. A huge cone that stretched toward the sky, an inverted cone of the same size connected to the unseen ceiling, a constant and massive stream of energy connecting the two.

"The core..." whispered the dragon.

More silence... and then, after what seemed to be forever, Sparx turned to his adoptive brother.

"So... how do we destroy it?"

That was... an excellent question. All Spyro got to answer that was: "Errr..."

And well, he had no time to think of anything else as a loud noise echoed. Startled, both reptile and insect turned to the side... and saw the most horribly oversized sheep they had ever seen. It was truly massive and judging from its glowing red eyes, it was certainly not a regular sheep. But that, one could tell it on its size alone. It as truly... humongous beyond belief. Giant enough to make even Cynder, back when she was possessed and forced into an adult form, look like a tiny insect. This new foe was truly giving a new meaning to the word "towering".

"BEEEEEEEH" the sheep's cry echoed through the entire room, making it shake and almost causing the purple dragon to lose his balance.

bzzzzzzt...

CLANG!

Then, out of the giant sheep's back, two massive cylinders, bazookas more exactly, emerged. Then, the sheep let out a deafening roar of sorts.

"O-o-okay... I'm just confused whenever I should just call it the lamest giant bad guy we ever faced or the scariest," said Sparx, hovering back, eyes widening, his voice shaking as violently as his body.

Spyro himself just stood there, unable to say anything. That thing was... creepy.

"Hahahaha!" way, way above, on a bridge near the core, there was a little dot... but both Spyro and Sparx easily figured out that this dot was the captain of the Sign of Ruin. "Although I must commend you for making this far, know that you will not get any closer to the core, not even one step! This... this is the Sheepaminator, the Dark Master's pride and joy! His ultimate creation! It is a marvel of technology and unholy magic! So... are you scared, little insects? You are sorry now, aren't you? HA! There shall be no mercy for the enemies of the Dark Master! So... ready to meet his wrath? You better be! SHEEPAMINATOR!"

The speech completed, the giant robotic sheep stood there, as if awaiting the last part of its order...

"KILL! KILL! KILL KILL KILL THEM BOTH!" screamed the little Dark One, pointing at both Spyro and Sparx.

The sheep slowly turned to face the purple dragon...

"Err... S-S-Spyro?" asked the dragonfly. Slowly turning his head, now shaking like his dragonfly friend, Spyro faced Sparx.

"Y-yeah?" asked back the dragon.

"RUUUUUN!"

And with that said, both of them turned around and ran.

BOOOM!

...and it's a good thing they did so for just as the two begun to run for it, a massive explosion echoed behind them, the strong burning wind picking them up and flinging them across the room with great strength, interrupting their escape as both of them slammed into the floor and slided for a bit.

On one hand, that explosion caused by one of the Sheepaminator's missiles only served to prove how overwhelming of a foe it was... but on the other hand, Spyro narrowed his eyes at the same time as Sparx as they both got back up.

"HA HAHAHA!!! Had enough, dragon? Pah! So much for the Dragon of Prophecy!" taunted the captain from his bridge, which only served to further make the two change their minds about their original course of action.

Sparx hovered there, crossing his arms, a frown on his face as he stared at his friend. "What the heck are we doin', Spyro? We're not REALLY going to lose at the very end... and at the hands... err... paws of a silly robotic sheep, aren't we? I mean... come on! It's a big sheep, true, but it's still a sheep!"

The dragon nodded before turning back toward the giant sheep, an expression mixing determination and anger. The dragon rose, looking straight at the foe, chasing all of his nervousism away and shoving all of his fear deep in a forgotten part of himself.

"You're right. Come on! Let's trash that thing!"

And with that said, the dragon lowered his head and charged straight toward the humongous machine, the yellow dragonfly flying by his side.

Seeing this, the Dark One smirked. What are those fools doing? Can't they see that they are no match for the amazing might of the Sheepaminator? That automated war machine is the most powerful fighting force in the entire Universe! Even if the Sign of Ruin was to fail, the Dark Master would have still ruled the world through fear, fear of the Sheepaminator! Do those two truly believe that they can outmatch the most magnificent of the Dark Master's creations?

"SHEEPAMINATOR! ACTIVATE SAW BLADE SPIN DECK! CRUSH THEM! CRUSH THEM LIKE PANCAKES!!!" screamed the monkey at the top of his lungs.

Immediately, the robot obeyed. It withdrew its head within inside of its fluffy shell alongside with its limbs and then, rose slightly above the floor, revealing a battery of thrusters spewing flames. Then, flames begun to emerge from the holes where the limbs used to be as the thing begun to spin and spin and spin like a top at an increasingly dizzying speed!

Then, the whole thing sent itself flying straight at Spyro at an absolutely incredible speed! Unfortunately, due to its size and speed, Spyro figured he had no time to evade.

"AAAAAH!" yelled Sparx as fear once again rose and as he barely dodged, flying above the thing at the last second.

Spyro, him, yelped and dived on his stomach, protecting his face with his paws and waiting for the impact...

FWZOOOOOOOM!

...but once again, Spyro's small size proved to be an advantage as the thing zoomed harmlessly above him... although he felt unpleasant friction on the spikes on his back and his tail. The thrusters' exhaust flames also barely missed him, almost scorching him on the way.

Still, fact is, the thing missed him.

Spyro, realizing that he was still alive, placed his paws off his head. That had been WAY too close...

"Phew! Well, that was..."

CLAAAAANG!

"LOOK OUT!" Sparx interrupted Spyro's thoughts as he pointed toward the back, where the noise came from.

Spyro's eyes widened as he saw the Sheepaminator charging back at him after bouncing off the wall! Man, that thing's nasty!

...but on another hand, it doesn't seem like it can change directions very well and this time, he has enough distance to dodge. His smirk returning, Spyro waited until the thing was close enough and then, jumped to the side! Just as the monstrous machine passed by, just next to him, the dragon opened his mouth, inhaled deeply, and then unleashed his power. Considering this was a machine, electricity was the most obvious element to use and thus, out of his mouth, a serie of thunderbolts emerged and slammed into the fluffy artificial fur of his foe.

The Sheepaminator slowly skidded to a halt after being shocked and then, its thrusters shutting down, its limbs and head emerged as it once again stood.

"Hahahaha! Your efforts are useless! The Sheepaminator was designed with the best in terms of magical defenses! None of your breath attacks will work and its armor plating is reinforced! Your puny little claws will not make a scratch on that war machine, believe me!" Yet another taunt from the monkey and one that was especially frustrating for indeed, it did seem that the robot had taken absolutely no damage.

"Darn! The fur must have absorbed my attack..." said aloud the dragon, more to himself than to anyone else.

...and then, Sparx had an idea. He smirked evilly and then, approached the dragon...

"Reinforced and magically shielded right?" said the dragonfly before pointing at the gigantic core, behind the Sheepaminator.

That's right! Why didn't he think about it? They were fighting in the engine room, just by the core!... and well, that is actually a good coincidence! After all, he wouldn't be able to destroy neither the core nor the Sheepaminator by himself... but on another hand, having the robot crash into the core will most probably make a dent into it and well, that big stream of energy surely cannot be healthy for that huge sheep!

Now, to get that huge sheep to charge into the core...

"SHEEPAMINATOR! FIRE THE NAIL GRENADES! PIERCE, PIERCE, PIERCE PIERCE THEM 'TIL THEY LOOK LIKE SWISS CHEESE!"

Well, darn. The thing got a whole arsenal of attacks. Looks like he'll have to do a bit of dodging before the thing charges at him again. But well... this is the core's final defense. Did he truly expect it to be easy?

The two bazookas on the back of the robot slowly moved, placing themselves almost in a vertical position. Just in case, the dragon ran the opposite way of the Sheepaminator, putting some distance in-between himself and the thing...

BAM BAM!

"INCOMING!" yelled Sparx. Spyro heard it and indeed saw the two weird spheres heading toward him. He brought his wings to his sides and then flapped them, sending himself skidding away from the two spheres.

The two spheres harmlessly bounced on the floor, away from Spyro.

"Well, that was disappointing," commented Sparx. No big explosion? That was a lousy attack!

BOOM BOOM!

Sparx yelped as a rain of huge nails flew past him, one of them nearly slamming into him...

SCRUNCHL!

Sparx... did not like this sound. It was the sound of something metallic piercing through flesh at high speed and as if on cue, it was followed shortly after by a deafening scream of pain.

Spyro clawed at the floor, maintaining his balance. Fortunately, he had been looking away when the two grenades exploded but his side had been pierced by a dozen of giant nails, his entire side covered in red, a crimson pool slowly forming. The purple dragon tried to keep tears from forming but he couldn't help it. That felt... awful, completely and totally awful. He had been struck countless times with countless types of weapons and he admitted, right here and now, that was probably one of the most painful injuries he had ever received. Even being bitten and thrown about like a ragdoll by Cynder had not felt this painful.

But then, Sparx, him, could see that Spyro was not in a good shape at all. Thankfully, the nails did not strike his head, neck, or limbs... but one nail had pierced right through his left wing, leaving a gapping hole where there should be skin, and one could see the giant metal poles on his side, blood streaming out at an alarming pace.

It was obvious that Spyro would not be able to survive too many hits like this one.

"HAHAHA! Hurts, doesn't it? Well, you have seen NOTHING yet! SHEEPAMINATOR! ACTIVATE BLADE CANNON! CUT! CUT AND SLICE AND CUT'EM 'TIL THEY'RE IN SLICES THIN ENOUGH TO FIT MY SHOES!"

Gritting his teeth and fighting the incredible pain, Spyro turned to see the monstrous sheep's two cannons slowly uniting and then, transforming into a sole, much bigger cannon... as if the original two were not big enough already.

Then, slowly, he saw a huge circular saw blade protruding from the cannon's opening... and well, it was quite obvious that it was going to be fired at him.

PTOING!

Spyro dived down as the blade was shot...

CLANG!

... and it collided with the floor, just in front of him and bouncing of it, barely missing him.

shlsh.

Oh great. The sound of a blade slicing through flesh. He must have been hit, again. Annoyed, the dragon got back on his feet and looked at himself. Still pretty hurt... but he saw no new injuries. His tail? Nope. No scratches either...

The dragon looked up and then his eyes widened when he realized what the sound was.

Sparx hovered there, eyes widened. "Ha... ha... that was way too close. That blade... I REALLY saw it from too close, I tell you..."

"S-Sparx?" the dragonfly turned to face his friend, wondering why he was suddenly acting so strange.

"What now? Why you're freaking out like that... and someone tell me why..." The dragonfly didn't finish his sentence when he realized why his friend was so worried.

The blade had passed close enough to actually slice into him and the dragonfly noticed a rather wide opening in his chest, close to his shoulder, a bit of green dripping.

"Drats." was all the insect could find to say.

...and well, Spyro had enough. Yes, he could bear the bad guys beating him up... but no one, NO ONE hurts his brother. NO ONE! The dragon turned to the huge machine, eyes lighting up, rage rising quickly. He was so enraged... he could feel the flames escaping his nostrils, a hurricane building up inside him and longing to be unleashed upon that dumb machine.

"Okay. I just had enough of this guy! Sparx! Take cover above me! Protection or not, I'm frying that thing!"

The dragonfly wanted to tell the dragon that he was okay despite it all but noticing the sudden rise in temperature and the weird red particles, he figured it was not the best moment to object. After all, the only thing he could do when Spyro was unleashing a Fury Attack was to hide above him, at the only safe spot, and wait for the reptile to take out his anger upon his victim... in this case, the Sheepaminator.

"Well, about time you brought out the heavy cannons!" replied quickly Sparx as he flew toward Spyro and then, grabbed into his right horn.

Slowly, the dragon allowed his body to relax, letting the gathering power blow through his body, making him rise as the flows of fiery energy gathered into him, making him rise as a tornado of flames slowly formed around him.

"Hahahaha! It's useless! Not even your Fury Attack can harm the Sheepaminator! Your efforts are in vain! Give up!"

That worried Sparx... but then, he looked at the situation at hand. Sheepaminator in front of them, the core behind the Sheepaminator and well, he remembered that although Spyro had not damaged the thing with his breath earlier on, he had still knocked it back a bit... and well, when it comes to knock back, nothing beats the Fury Attacks. A smile came to Sparx as he bent down and whispered to the raging dragon...

"Spyro. Aim a bit more to the left..."

Spyro grinned as he understood and realized this fact as well. He turned a bit to the left and then, just as the power peaked and that he felt his entire body burning, he gasped and screamed in rage as he allowed his feelings to overwhelm him for a moment, becoming one with his fury as he unleashed the gathered power.

As the fiery energy was expelled, it caused a brutal explosion, ejecting the nails that had struck him earlier out of his body.

The gigantic wave of flames travelled quickly and then slammed into the giant robot. Above, the captain laughed as the wave slammed into the machine. As if this was going to do any damage!

The Sheepaminator was flung high in the air by the massive wave.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! See! Even your Fury Attack won't..." But then, he stopped in the middle of his speech when he realized, much to his horror, toward what the Sheepaminator was flying.

Both Spyro and Sparx, them, grinned.

SLAAAAAM!

The Sheepaminator slammed straight into the middle of the lower cone of the core, coming into contact with the stream. Instantly, it crushed the top of the cone, causing the core to malfunction while the intense streams of energy went straight through the machine's circuits, soon causing it to explode violently, sending metal bits flying everywhere while the core itself begun to malfunction and detonate.

"No... no... NO! M-m-my Sheepaminator! MY BABY! W-w-what have you done?!? It was the Dark Master's finest machine! This is impossible! The Prophecy is false! THE PROPHECY IS FALSE!" the captain was in total denial. This just couldn't happen. The Sheepaminator destroyed by a ridiculous purple flea? Insanity!

"Oh really? Well, now's the time to believe!" taunted Spyro as the core continued to explode...

And then, suddenly, a loud alarm echoed as well as a monotone, robotic voice.

"The core's status has went critical. Auto-repair attempts have failed. Evacuate immediately."

"B-b-but... my... my precious Sign of Ruin!" almost cried the captain, still in denial.

Grinning, the dragon turned to his friend. "Well... that's our cue. Let's go!"

"I'm right behind you, Spyro!" replied Sparx.

And with that said, both turned and begun to run as the captain stood on the bridge, cackling madly, not believing that this had happened to him...

Watching from the other bridges, the other Dark Ones swore and trashed about in total rage. The Sheepaminator had failed and the ship was scrapped. Now, the Dark Master's plan was in jeopardy! How dare this purple pest do this? That stupid reptile will not escape with its life!

Captain or not, the Dark Ones rushed through the various doors, intent on preventing the dragon from escaping.

* * *

Despite his injury, Spyro kept running. It seemed that adrenaline was numbing his pain totally... 

It was only now that they were escaping that the two realized just how huge the Sign of Ruin truly was... and the alarm kept echoing along with the robotic voice, telling them that they were going to run out of time.

"WE'RE NOT GONNA MAKE IT!" yelled Sparx, most of his voice covered by the alarm.

Spyro frowned as a response, running as fast as his little legs allowed him to. But then, finally, the two saw light!

...and a few dozens of angry Dark Ones intent on keeping them from getting out.

"Evacuate immediately. Core explosion imminent. Fifty seconds before core failure." echoed the voice.

"DARN! NO TIME FOR THEM!" yelled the dragon to himself in frustration. So close yet so far...

They couldn't fail now! They couldn't die just as they destroyed the Dark Master's super weapon! Ignitus and the others had to learn that they succeeded! He wanted to tell them himself! He had to!

...and for that, he had to pass, no matter what.

"SPARX! ON THE COUNT OF THREE..." Sparx wanted to ask his friend what he was talking about... but seeing him not even slowing down, it became obvious what he was going to do. But then, what choice did they have?

"THREE!" yelled Spyro and then, both dragon and dragonfly thrown themselves towards the light and the Dark Ones.

SLASH SLASH SLASH SLASH!

As they leaped above the horde of furry monsters, they stuck their spears and swung their weapons madly. Sparx managed to fly just about out of reach... but Spyro, him, widened his eyes as an unspeakable pain struck him from every single point in his body.

Finally, the two emerged outside!

"MADE IT! Now..." the dragonfly stopped as he turned around. Spyro had not opened his wings when he thrown himself through the opening. In fact, he saw his friend drop down and through the clouds...

"SPYRO!" the dragon never heard his friend as he lost consciousness, overwhelmed by the injuries he had received.

After a very long fall, the dragon slammed into a giant toadstool within the swamp near Dragon Temple, piercing through its cap, and then landed in a rather painful way in the mud below. Spyro had about less than five percent of chances of surviving all of this, his shape almost unrecognizable from the various injuries and his body nearly drained of its blood due to said injuries.

* * *

The explosion of the Sign of Ruin could be seen from the Dragon Temple. Ignitus, Cynder, and the others smiled as they saw the gigantic ship break in two and fall from the sky. 

Spyro had done it. The Sign of Ruin was no more...

Yet, not all of the dragons were there to watch the Sign of Ruin's end. Terrador, the green Guardian of the Earth element, stood in the deeper parts of the temple.

The stone upon which the Prophecy had been carved, so long ago... many years had passed since anyone had went there to read it and look at its depictions of the past, present, and future. After all, the Dragon Temple had fallen into enemy hands years ago and with the events of the last months, there had been no time to read the Prophecy after retaking the temple.

But now, Terrador thought the time had come. With the future becoming blurry and uncertain, maybe the ancient words of the Ancestors would give them guidance...

He looked at the Prophecy... more exactly, the part about the Dragon of Prophecy. The purple dragon...

Spyro was quite surprising as far as it went. Who would have thought that the Dragon of Prophecy would have been...

...huh?

For a moment, Terrador thought he read that wrong so he read it again.

...what?

He read it again... and then looked at the picture engraved next to it. The description of the Dragon of Prophecy and the image of what he shall look like...

"The Dragon of Prophecy, the purple dragon blessed with the powers of the Ancestors..." read aloud the ancient dragon. "A magnificent creature, pure in shape and in essence, perfect in both body and mind..."

The picture on the stone shown the picture of a beautiful purple dragon with large wings, perfect proportions for its body, and an overall graceful appearance.

...totally the opposite of Spyro. But then, he was young. He would eventually grow into such a dragon...

Still, there was one part of the Prophecy that had always bothered him. It was the name of the dragon. For some reason, that part of the Prophecy had always been unreadable...

Of course, "Spyro" was writen there. It was common sense and he knew that if the symbols weren't so strange, it would be written like this.

He slowly touched the stone... and then realized something. The unreadable part... at this spot, the stone stuck out, as if not fitting.

The dragon grabbed into the stone and realized why it was sticking out like this. It had been placed upside down. He replaced it in the correct direction and read the inscription again...

"The name of the Dragon of Prophecy, of the pure purple dragon... shall be Astrial."

Ha, so at long last, the inscription can be fully re...

WHAT?!? Astrial? Not Spyro?

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	2. Ideal

OFF: Took a while but finally, the next chapter of Prophecy is completed! Hopefully, the chapter shouldn't disappoint.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 1: Ideal**

The true hero is the one chosen by Will. To the one who has Will, the path of Fate will open.

* * *

"I still cannot believe Spyro survived such injuries. I saw many dragons die from much less!"

"That is indeed a fact. No normal dragon could survive this. Only the Dragon of Prophecy could survive such damage."

"This is not important. The Prophecy is clear. The name of the Dragon of Prophecy is Astrial, not Spyro! We must keep in mind the possibility that he might be A purple dragon, not THE purple dragon."

"Non-sense! The Prophecy has been wrong many times before!"

"It was only our interpretation of vague parts that were wrong. This is not a vague part. "The Dragon of Prophecy is Astrial". Now, try to tell me that this part is vague."

"Who's to say that it isn't Spyro's name?... or rather, what it would have been? Last I know, he was named by the dragonflies who found him. If he had been born among us, he would have had the name Astrial for all we know!"

"Maybe... but Spyro not being the Dragon of Prophecy might explain the inconsistencies regarding his origins. After all, the Dragon of Prophecy was meant to be born and raised among ancient dragons who would train him in the ancient ways, not dragonflies!"

"And what have we done ever since we found him, if not train him in the ancient ways? He is also still a hatchling, so it counts as "raising" him, too. I would like to add that we are no longer exactly in our primes either... although that last point, I like less."

"Anyway. It doesn't truly matter. The Prophecy spoke of a fake who would eventually rise to counter the Dragon of Prophecy. It was always believed that this "Anti-Dragon of Prophecy" was Cynder... but..."

"And what do you think you are implying? That Spyro is a servant of the Dark Master? Please!"

"No... but if he truly is the Dragon of Prophecy... then maybe there is a much greater foe than even Cynder was awaiting him... an usurper."

"I cannot believe this. I cannot believe that we are all arguing like this. The Sign of Ruin is destroyed, the Dark Master's master plan foiled... and yet, we argue and worry as if we were still going to be wiped out."

"... and it might as well happen! True, the Sign of Ruin was his mightiest weapon, the one spoken of in the Prophecy that could have doomed us all... but we are only but a handful of survivors! If the Dark Master launch a full-scale assault, we will stand not the shadow of a chance!"

The first feeling that came to Spyro was pain. Major amounts of pain in most of his body. His side ached, his wing ached, his head did too, every single part of his body ached in every single way that could be imagined.

Then, almost immediately after, a realization came to him.

He was alive. He had survived.

Somehow, despite all the injuries and the fall, he was still alive.

If he had been able to, he would have jumped up and down in happiness and relief. He's alive! He got through it!

...but then, another realization came to him.

The Guardians were arguing about something and it was both causing him a headache, due to how loud they yelled, and it was confusing him. Astrial? Usurper? Anti-what? What is that all about?

The purple dragon slowly rolled back on his feet and then, turned to face the four elder dragons, still arguing loudly. Near them, a small black dragon hatchling frowned, shaking her head while Sparx flew above, arms crossed, wondering who was truly the mature ones considering.

...and while the Guardians were busy arguing, both Cynder and Sparx noticed that Spyro had finally come back to his senses.

"HEY! THE MAUVE ONE'S AWAKE!" yelled Sparx at the top of his lungs.

Then, there was complete silence.

The purple dragon looked around at the same time as the black one and the dragonfly did. That... was not the kind of welcome Spyro had expected.

"Come on! Shouldn't you be congratulating him for breaking the Sign of Whatever? I mean... he nearly bought it for that, ya know! Doesn't he, and myself, deserve at least a thank you?"

Although Spyro was tempted to shut Sparx up, he didn't do so for, well, he sure had a point. He just woke up after a near-death experience, returning from the Sign of Ruin after successfully destroying it... and all the Guardians do is stare at him like that? Shouldn't they be grateful or something? What's going on here? Is it related to the argument from before?

"Spyro..." Finally, the red dragon elder, Ignitus, decided himself and stepped forward. "I fear that we may not congratulate you yet... for there is an important matter which must be taken care of beforehand..."

Sparx slapped his forehead, seemingly annoyed, before flying back to Spyro's side. The dragon looked to his brother, noticing his deep frown, and suspected he had a reason to do so. Although he had a bad feeling, he turned back to the Guardian, listening carefully...

"Spyro... you must head to the Pure Mountain to the east."

"Pure Mountain? What's that?" spontaneously asked Spyro when he noticed that Ignitus did not go into a long explanation about what that particular area was as he usually did when he was about to send him to far-off places.

...and although he was accustomed to the weird, amused and sometimes annoyed looks the Guardians gave him when he usually asked questions, he was surprised when he saw all of them except for Ignitus openly glaring at him, as if he had asked a very stupid question.

"Do you remember, Spyro, when I told you about the end of the war? When everything seemed lost and that Cynder's forces wiped our forces out..." At the mention of this, the black dragoness looked down. The purple dragon turned to face her, frowning a bit from it all... but when he saw the look that the Guardians gave him, he straightened himself and focused on the explanation anew.

"...what I had not said was that we, the Guardians, were not the sole survivors. During the war, our main headquarters was the original Dragon Temple located on the Pure Mountain, our most holy sanctuary located in the depths of the dragons' holy lands, the Sacred Cliffs of Dragon Dive. However, when we began to lose, we, the Guardians, brought most of the eggs with us to the hidden Dragon Temple, in this swamp. A group of dragons remained at the old Dragon Temple, intend on fighting Cynder to the end. We always assumed that they had perished, overrun by the enemy considering the impossibly overwhelming odds that they had to face..."

The explanation finished, Spyro figured out what Ignitus wanted him to do...

"So... you think that maybe, there's a slight chance that some dragons might have survived and you want me to go there to look."

Ignitus nodded, a slight smile coming to his aged face.

However, Sparx was not convinced. "Wait just a minute here. Why now?"

Everyone turned to face the dragonfly. What kind of question was that? The insect carried on...

"I mean, why now, after Cynder has been beaten and the Sign of Ruin, scrapped? I mean... couldn't we have used the help before? Why look for survivors NOW, of all times?"

...and well, that was a very good question actually. The purple dragon turned back to the Guardians. "Yeah. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

The Guardians looked at each others, seemingly conflicted once again... and finally, after whispering to each others, Ignitus spoke up in their names.

"Because we were convinced that it was totally impossible any of them could have survived until we discovered a... troubling... fact. I fear that I cannot explain what that fact is, however. So... I will ask you to go there and search the original Dragon Temple."

Both the dragon hatchling and his friend looked at the Guardians carefully, pondering whenever they should insist or not and well, after seeing their glares not weakening even a little bit, both of them figured out that they would find out later after all.

Sighing, the purple dragon decided himself, accepting to go despite being annoyed and confused as to why they were obviously hiding information from him.

"Alright. I'll do it..."

"Excellent," said Ignitus. "Now, I'll tell you where it is..." And with that said, he proceeded to explain, as usual, where it is located...

* * *

"I can't believe you sent him off!" yelled Cynder, visibly upset. "I mean... look at him! There's a gaping hole in his left wing and he's still weak from his battle within the Sign of Ruin!"

"Listen, Cynder. We must find out whenever Spyro is truly the Dragon of Prophecy or not. There is no other way... and the sooner we find out, the better," tried to explain the elderly red dragon but he felt that it was a losing battle.

"Why does it matter? He... he saved you, all of you, and me too. Isn't that enough? I don't care if he's the Dragon of Prophecy or not. Why does it matter anyway?"

The Guardian pondered about this. He had pondered long about this, actually. Truly, did it matter? The will of the Ancestors is that only the Dragon of Prophecy might fulfill the path planned by fate... but was the Prophecy truly absolute? In fact, was the Ancestors' will truly absolute? He had paid dearly for his lack of faith and his questions many times.

...he also knew that it was why Cyril and Terrador, the Guardians of Ice and Earth, did not hold him in high regard. They had never quite accepted how he had been a coward, running away and escaping the grasp of Cynder when all was lost rather than standing his ground and fighting. He... had ran away, leaving the others and the eggs to their fate.

Volteer was the only one that had not taken personal offense from this. But then, Volteer had always been a long-time friend. Ever since they were hatchlings, way, way before being chosen as Guardians, the two always were friends. He, like him, was also a "common" dragon...

Blood... not all dragons have "pure blood" as many of them so proudly claimed. Although the dragons were all one specie, countless races existed... and those with "pure blood" were always blessed with purer, greater powers... but as time went and as a rift appeared between those with pure blood and those who were born of mixed unions, arrogance rose.

He still remembered it... how long it took for Cyril and Terrrador, two pure-blooded dragons raised specifically to be Guardians, to accept that two worthless commoners, himself and Volteer, could have the potential to be Guardians. In a way, Cyril never truly accepted it, even today, centuries later...

...why was this old brain going around recollecting all of this all of a sudden?

The young Cynder awaits an answer...

"Cynder... you must have heard us. The Prophecy speaks of an usurper, a dragon whose color will be the same as the Dragon of Prophecy but who will bring doom rather than salvation. This dragon... might live at the Pure Mountain."

The answer did not please the hatchling at all. She showed her teeth, almost growling.

"What? You are saying that you sent Spyro to face off against what might be his nastiest foe yet... and while he's in this state? He doesn't stand a chance like this! I must help him!"

The female dragon spun around quickly and begun to walk away. The older dragon stepped forward.

"Stop right there! Where do you think you are going?"

"I'm going to help Spyro!" she replied.

"Helping Spyro? What do you think you are doing, dragoness? You are but a hatchling. You cannot help him. Leave things in his hands. Believe in him..."

This reply, far from calming Cynder down, only made her narrow her eyes.

"I'm sick of just "believing in him". I won't sit idle while he risks his life for all of us one more second. I'm going and you won't stop me."

"Cynder!" he called... but the black dragon ignored him. All he could do was sit there and sigh loudly as she left.

* * *

"Three... two... one..." counted Sparx.

BAM!

"OUCH!"

Sparx smirked as Spyro proceeded to yell a bunch of childish, incoherent stuff, the closest to expletives that the purple dragon knew.

"Aaaaand that is why the Dragon of Prophecy sticks to the ground!" announced Sparx triumphantly.

Spyro was not quite skilled at flying and it was very rare for him to be able to take off and land without crashing. In fact, it was a source of despair and annoyance for almost everyone but Sparx, who greatly enjoyed the dragon's flight handicap, taking the opportunity to make jabs at his performance every single time and well, although the dragon could usually stomach Sparx's comments easily, he took jabs at his flight abilities personally every time.

Okay, so maybe he should have slowed down or something or whatever but he had truly no way of having much control considering that gaping hole in his left wing. Actually, it's a miracle he made it there considering his injury. Yeah, he kind of slid over the ground upon landing and smashed into a nearby rock... but that's no reason to laugh!

"Yeah right! I would have liked to see you try to fly and land safely with a HOLE in your left wing!" he almost yelled, his words coming out not as coherent as intended due to a loud growl that came out of his throat at the same time.

"Pfft! Excuses excuses! Come on! Let's go!" And there he goes. Before he could say anything else, the insect had already zoomed off. He didn't go too far but he obviously was implying "indirectly" that he wished for the purple reptile to move.

Rolling his eyes as he sighed loudly, Spyro shook off the last of the dizziness and begun to move forward.

As the dragon moved on, he took the time to look around... and well, the sight was quite... disturbing to say the least. Sparx had slowed down by now and soon enough, the dragonfly returned by Spyro's side.

Pure Mountain was a perplexing sight. For a location supposed to be the dragons' holiest of all holy sites, it really didn't look like it. It was located far, far atop a serie of extremely thin mountains, like spikes, that reached out to the sky and entertwined together, forming a serie of unstable platforms. The pure white rock was untouched by life, not even a single plant anywhere. The whole place seemed so surreal. A serie of natural paths made of white rock above an endless abyss, the whole thing high above the clouds, where the wind barely reached. Peaceful silence and lonely emptiness way beyond what the eye can see...

"It's quiet... too quiet," said the dragon as he looked around.

"Please don't, Spyro! Every time you said that, we were ambushed!" replied the dragonfly, every bit as creeped out as the dragon.

And for the first time, nothing happened despite Spyro saying the cursed words.

...well, actually, nope. In the distance, the two finally saw their destination. The shape of a temple could be seen in the distance, at the end of the path.

"Well, that's easy so far," commented the dragonfly, half-relieved that nothing attacked, half-disappointed because that his feeling of dread was slowly giving away to boredom.

"Let's hope it stays that way," replied the dragon as he continued his march forward.

* * *

"Wow. Just... wow. I'm speechless," said Sparx, eyes widened.

Both the dragon and dragonfly stood there, eyes widened before the sight. The true Dragon Temple was barely anything like the one they were used to. First of all, it was HUMONGOUS and even then, the word wasn't really fitting. The structure was so gigantic that it was probably even bigger than Cynder's castle had been... and well, her castle wasn't anything to sneeze at, either! Also, while Cynder's castle was quite plain all things considering, the real Dragon Temple was covered with statues, strange paintings, weird carvings, and all other things. Even the door was so imposing and covered with symbols that the two young beings couldn't even begin to imagine what it was beyond said door. Even if there were no survivors, the trip was worth it just for the sight alone.

...and well, the chances of survivors was pretty slim. While most of Pure Mountain had been pretty empty, the surroundings of the temple were littered with countless skeletons of Dark Ones and dragons alike. There had been some brutal battles here and considering how ruined the temple is, it's obvious that the foes who attacked were prepared. Which side won was impossible to guess from the battlefield alone. The temple was ruined and many dragon skeletons were around, true... but the abnormally high number of dead Dark Ones also shown that if they did overrun the place, it was at an incredibly high cost.

As the feeling of awe from seeing the temple from this close faded, the dread of being surrounded by so many dead beings returned, instilling the two with a feeling of urgency and motivating the both of them to get the task done with as soon as possible.

Without saying a word, the purple dragon approached the massive door that led inside and pushed on it with his right claw.

Despite the door's size, Spyro effortlessly pushed it wide open, much to the two's surprise. The two then slowly proceeded inside, not knowing what awaited them...

The two did not notice the door slowly closing itself behind them as they proceeded within the ruined temple's halls.

After a surprisingly short time, the two arrived in a room that was almost identical to the training room from the Dragon Temple they knew. The place was identical to the one they knew except that the floor was entirely made of pure white stone like the walls rather than having dirt covering the floor. There were no plants anywhere either and the familiar ethereal feeling was replaced by a strange new one. The magic that pulsated within this temple was a lot stronger and ancient... but also very cold and unfeeling. The feeling was almost alien to the two.

Then, they saw them.

Three gigantic dragons lying down on their side near the walls.

Spyro approached the closest one and was about to speak when he noticed the rather gaping hole in its side that he had not seen earlier. That dragon was obviously dead.

Sparx, him, had flew to meet the other two dragons but saw them with similar lethal injuries.

The dragonfly flew back to Spyro, shaking his head. The purple dragon felt a shiver go through his spine. Those dragons... they had not turned to skeletons like the others which meant that they had been killed a lot more recently... which means that until recently, there were survivors. Who could have killed those dragons? Considering their size and their looks, they were ancient, even more than the Guardians. Were they strong or weakened by age? That, they will probably never know now...

"Hey! Spyro!"

The purple dragon turned to see the dragonfly, now looking intently at the strange statue in the middle of the room. The purple dragon slowly approached and then, rose an eyebrow, expecting an explanation.

"Don't you find it weird that it's the sole thing that isn't damaged in this whole place?" asked Sparx, pointing at the statue.

When he thought about it... yeah. It was the statue of a dragon about his size right in the middle of the room. Considering that everything else had been smashed into pieces, it was surprising to see such a finely crafted white stone statue being totally intact in the middle of this room. It was also very suspicious.

The dragon slowly closed in and then, tentatively, poked it with one of his claws.

Then, the statue shook slightly.

Spyro jumped backward, startled, just as Sparx flew backward, both of them putting some distance between themselves and the statue as it begun to shake more and more.

The dragon gritted his teeth as he assumed his battle stance. If this thing was alive and that it had killed the three dragons, it would most probably be something quite powerful... and well, he hadn't recovered from the battle at the Sign of Ruin if that hole in his wing was any indication. Still, if he had to fight, he would. He just hoped that he wasn't pushing his luck too far this time...

Then, after shaking a bit more, the statue finally stopped and begun to crumble down revealing that it had been hiding something underneath.

...and at this moment, both Spyro's and Sparx's eyes widened.

After shaking off the last of the stone that had covered it, a dragon that seemed to be Spyro's age walked off the pedestal.

The fact that a dragon had just broke out of a statue was shocking enough. The fact that it was a hatchling was even more shocking. But then, maybe the Guardians didn't have time to bring all of the eggs with them so it could be passed off as mildly logical at best.

However, what shocked the two the most was the fact that it was a purple dragon like Spyro.

This purple dragon was very different from Spyro. For starters, it had large, well-developed, healthy wings. Its eyes were the same size and its entire body had perfect proportions and curves, giving it a graceful shape. Its limbs were just the right size and were quite strong. It was also significantly larger than Spyro. Not a whole lot but still, he was quite bigger to say the least. In fact, it was basically like Spyro except better in every single point and larger.

"Okay? I'm weirded out now. Isn't it supposed to be only one purple dragon or something per ten generations?" asked Sparx.

"Thought so too..." said Spyro, not sure what to think of this.

The dragon approached Spyro and slowly looked at him. As the weird purple one observed Spyro, he couldn't help but feel creeped out. Same for Sparx. In fact, for some reason, they were getting a baaaad feeling from this...

Then, after a while, the new purple dragon seemed to grow confused and begun to shake his head, as if in denial.

"Hmmm... is there a problem?" asked the dragonfly, wondering why the new dragon had such a weird expression. Yeah, Spyro was small and maybe not exactly thin but was he so shocking? No one had seemed so shocked about Spyro before...

"How? Why?" muttered the purple dragon under his breath, seemingly horrified by Spyro for some ill reason.

He stood there, just shaking his head... and then, turned to face Spyro and stared into his eyes. The way he glared... if looks could kill, this particular look the new one was giving to Spyro would probably be at least close to lethal.

"There can be only one dragon blessed with the gift of the Ancestors! This can only mean that you are a fiend sent by the Dark Master!" he said with a lot of intensity, enough to startle Spyro and Sparx and make them back away slowly without even noticing it.

"Wow! Calm down, purple guy! We're not agents of the Dark Master or anything," said quickly the dragonfly.

"Yeah. We are not minions of the Dark Master. In fact, Ignitus sent us. Here. My name's Spyro. Glad to meet you," added Spyro, hoping to calm the other purple dragon.

The reptile kept glaring suspiciously at Spyro... and then, after a while, noticing that neither had attempted to attack, the dragon finally calmed down and sat down.

"Fine. I will trust you. Besides, you are too sane and calm to be Dark Master minions. Glad to meet you, Spyro."

He then made some sort of weird reverence which caused Sparx to smile, suppressing a laugh. A glare from Spyro convinced him not to say anything.

"I am the dragon who was blessed by the Ancestors through the will of fate. The purple color of my scales reflect my status for I am the Dragon of Prophecy. You may call me by the name of Astrial."

Spyro and Sparx turned to each others, raising an eyebrow, both growing suspicious of the new purple dragon. A strange purple dragon encased in a statue surrounded by dead adult dragons and who claims to be the Dragon of Prophecy. Sounds quite fishy! In fact, Sparx had a baaaad feeling about this. The Guardians had spoken of an usurper who would be Spyro's greatest enemy and well, this Astrial sure seemed to fit the bill!

"Is something troubling you?" asked Astrial, noticing the expressions of the two.

Sparx crossed his arms and then, hovered a bit closer. "Yeah. I mean, we're just wonderin' how it's possible for you to be the Dragon of Prophecy when Spyro happens to be just that. Not that we don't mind the reinforcements, the Ancestors or whatever knows how much we could use some help considering the mauve one's current state but still... I hope you understand why we're scratching our heads."

Sparx tended to be wrong when it came to his premonitions and well, he hoped that he would be wrong as usual. If that guy was anything like Spyro, he would probably walk all over his friend considering that he barely got out of the Sign of Ruin in one piece and still is not in too good a shape.

And well, although Spyro did not know about the whole usurper case since he was still knocked out when it was brought up, he still had a bad feeling about this. He knew that he wouldn't be able to win if he was to get into a serious fight right now.

"I see..." said Astrial, slowly backing away. "So, an usurper has risen. Only one of us can be the Dragon of Prophecy. We will have to endure a trial to figure out who of us is the real Dragon of Prophecy."

"A trial?" said Spyro, wondering what the other one was talking about.

"Yes. You claim that you know Ignitus. So, we must see him. He is a Guardian, an elder who uphold the ancient ways of the dragons. He will be able to determine who is the real one."

Sparx opened his mouth to say something but before he could say anything, Astrial had kicked into the ground and flew out of the room with such speed that it seemed as if a hurricane had passed through, the wind almost knocking Spyro off his feet and sending Sparx into the wall.

"WHOA! Talking about someone who should slow down a bit!" commented Sparx, Spyro nodding after recovering his balance.

Then, another surprise.

"SPYRO!" yelled Cynder as she barged into the room from another exit. The dragoness panted as she stood there and then, after noticing Spyro, ran up to him. "Thank goodness, you're alright!"

"Cynder?!? What are you doing here?... and what happened?" asked the male dragon, having absolutely no idea what she was doing there.

The female dragon stood there, catching her breath while Spyro stood there, looking at her worried. Sparx placed his hands behind his back and begun to whistle a romantic tune "innocently", watching the two. The dragonfly quickly stopped after receiving angry looks from both the purple and black dragons.

Then, once she finally managed to catch her breath, Cynder explained herself. "Spyro. The Guardians... they discovered that the Prophecy speaks of an imposter who will be the greatest foe you will ever face."

She shook her head, anger slowly rising. "I still can't believe they sent you in this state! I'm so glad you're okay! I was so worried for a moment..."

So, it explains everything. Astrial... he must have been that so-called imposter. Well, that explains a lot of stuff, actually. The dragon nodded slowly, not sure what to say...

Then, Cynder took out something. She had brought him strange glowing red gems. Red spirit gems...

"I know that it won't be as if you had waited for your body to recover naturally but..." Spyro smiled as he brought one of his fingers forward, making a gesture indicating politely that he wanted her to stop talking.

"Thank you Cynder. I really appreciate it," he said softly, his smile widening a bit.

The female smiled back and for a moment, they both stood there, just looking into each others' eyes...

More whistling from Sparx.

"Oh cut it out!" both of the dragons called angrily, angry glares being shot at Sparx who snickered a bit before stopping.

The black dragoness handed the red gems to Spyro before moving back a bit. Spyro looked down at the gems and then, slowly, closed his eyes.

Concentrating on the gems, the power slowly begun to flow through him and in an instant, his various injuries began to close until they were all gone, causing him to feel a whole lot better.

With his body regenerated, he dropped the now empty and colorless gems.

"Thanks, Cynder. I really needed that." He then turned to Sparx. "Well... I guess we'll be going back now."

Sparx smirked as if going to make another annoying remark but thankfully, remained silent. He just nodded a bit and then, pointed to the exit. The purple dragon then begun to move toward said exit but then stopped as he noticed he was hearing only the sounds of his own steps and Sparx's buzzing. He turned to see Cynder remaining still, looking down, as if worried.

"Something bothers you?" he asked.

"They didn't tell you..." she said, frowning.

"Tell me what?" continued Spyro, wondering what was the end of that last sentence.

"Tell you that the real Dragon of Prophecy is..." But then, she stopped, gazing at him for a moment. Then, her expression turned to that of amusement as she shook her head at her own stupid worry before running up to Spyro's side. "Forget it. Let's go, shall we?"

"Yeah," and with that said, Spyro begun to walk toward the exit anew, followed by Cynder.

"Hey. I wanted to know the end of that sentence!" said high and loud Sparx, upset that Cynder had interrupted what she was saying... although the way the two dragons hang together will still give him many more justifications to mock them and thus, made him forget about the sentence. Whistling in their backs was like, so funny! Hehehehe!

That last reply did amuse the purple dragon a little bit but it also worried him. What Cynder said... what did she meant? Did she somehow imply that?... no, it couldn't be. He had achieved so much and everyone depended on him. If he wasn't truly the Dragon of Prophecy then... well, he didn't know. Yeah, it was only a few months but so much had happened and he had grown to accept the fate and responsibilities of the Dragon of Prophecy. After all, it gave him an explanation why he had all those powers and how he, a simple hatchling, had been able to overcome such overwhelming odds...

There is no use in worrying. The Guardians wait for his safe return.

* * *

The trip back went perfectly well thanks to Spyro's regenerated wings. True, his skills at flight remained subpar but at least, all of it went well until...

BAM!

"OW!"

"SPYRO! LOOK OUT FOR THE--"

BAM!

"OW!"

"Spyro! Are you okay?"

As usual, Spyro failed his landing and crashed into the floor before sliding on his belly all the way to the pillar and smashing himself into it. As usual, Cynder ran up to him to make sure he was okay. And just as usual, Sparx took the opportunity to make a joke about it.

"Spyro and the pillar by the Dragon Temple's entrance... a touching love story! See as Spyro throws himself at the pillar again and again and again and again and again..."

Spyro growled under his breath, hoping that this stupid insect would become mute and thus, be unable to nail him with jokes for once. Yeah, he loved his adoptive brother and all... but couldn't he just, you know, shut the freak up for just five minutes?

Anyway, once the world stopped spinning wildly around him, he managed to get back. Once he was back on his feet, he shook himself a bit, and then turned to Cynder.

"Yeah, just a bit dizzy. Nothing too serious," he replied, giving her the usual reply.

Sparx flew to the purple dragon's side and placed himself in-between the purple and black dragons, crossing his arms.

"You know... Spyro has been crashing into that pillar ever since we moved into the Dragon Temple and to this day, he has been okay every single time. No need for you to repeat your lines every time too, ya know! It's mighty predictable, after all!... although I'll admit you never fail to crack me up! Hehehehe!" Although the comment was true, it still didn't fail to annoy the both of them and both dragons muttered a faint "Sparx..." to voice out their annoyance. The dragonfly barely paid attention to it and simply changed his position, now hovering to the side of Spyro's head as he usually did.

With that said, the three moved on and entered the Dragon Temple. Inside the ancient halls, everything was silent as usual. It was the same place that the three had come to call their home for the last few months. It was definitely a change from the swamp, for the purple and yellow ones, and a change from the tower, for Cynder. All of them definitely liked the place... although at times, they also longed for their homes, Cynder a bit less than the others for an obvious reason. Still, despite it all, it was a nice place, most definitely.

They passed by the dragon statue as usual in the center of the next room, paying it little attention, and finally reached the place of interest: the vision room which doubled as a meeting room. The four Guardians almost always remained in that room, spending their days trying to decipher visions, talking about the future, or sometimes acting like ordinary souls and chatting of stuff not related to the Prophecy and how to deal with the Dark Master... although the later was something the young ones seldom saw them doing. Oh well...

The three casually entered the room and as expected, saw the four elderly dragons waiting for them. What they did not expect was to see that other purple dragon standing by Ignitus's side.

"Welcome back, young dragons." For some reason, Ignitus's tone was a bit colder than usual. In fact, maybe it was Spyro's imagination but he thought that the red dragon sounded worried.

"Hi Ignitus. I've returned from the other Dragon Temple and well, I guess you already met Astrial, then," simply said Spyro.

The Guardian of fire slowly nodded as an answer before turning to the other purple dragon who was waiting patiently at his side.

"Now, as everyone knows, the Prophecy foretold of the coming of a purple dragon who would be the Dragon of Prophecy but only one may be the true Dragon of Prophecy. The Prophecy also foretold of an imposter who would bear the same color as the Dragon of Prophecy but be nothing more, in truth, than a mockery of it," explained the red dragon. Cynder and Sparx already knew that but Spyro, him, was surprised.

So, the Prophecy spoke of another purple dragon who would be an usurper? Well, that explains a lot of things! No wonder everyone was so nervous and asked him to go there! They were suspecting foul play from an imposter! But still... why now? What made them suspect the imposter was there? Most of all... if Astrial is the imposter, will he be able to defeat him? Most probably, the usurper must be a very powerful dragon if he's important enough to be mentionned by the Prophecy...

"Although Spyro has proven his valor many times in the past, the imposter is a being most foul, says the Prophecy. The only way to determine for sure who is the true Dragon of Prophecy is a sacred Trial that will put the two's powers and abilities to the test. The Dragon of Prophecy will succeed where the imposter will fail," continued Terrador.

"Now, follow me young dragons," said the green dragon as he opened the door to the statue room, followed by Ignitus and Astrial.

Spyro stood there for a moment before noticing that everyone was looking at him...

"Do not worry young dragon! The Trial is one hundred percents reliable! The chances of you being confirmed the Dragon of Prophecy are of five thousands against one, at least! My faith is in you!" That was Volteer. Always speaking in such a weird way and so much, it was amusing in a way... and well, it was nice to see that he had the yellow dragon's support.

"I believe in you, Spyro." That was from Cynder, he smiled as she nodded at him.

He then turned to Sparx, who hovered there, arms crossed. "Bah. Just routine work. I mean, it's obvious who's the Dragon of Prophecy here. I mean, who has actually ran around doing all the work? That's you. What did this Astrial dude do? Hide in a statue. Wow, big deal. You'll cream that clown at this so-called "Trial" whatever it might be, no problem! Just make sure to give us a good show, okay?"

The purple dragon smiled, glad to see that he had everyone's support... well, almost everyone's. Cyril was glaring at him in a way that he didn't like. It did creep him but well... can't please everyone. Guess that Cyril must have liked that Astrial's way of speaking or something. After all, Cyril had always been quite the boastful dragon and well, he never could get along with him quite as well as with the others.

Well... time to go.

He walked through the door and into the statue room...

* * *

The statue was already hidden under the floor, the training room's mechanisms activated by the time the tree entered the room. Ignitus and Terrador stood at the opposite end of the room while Astrial defiantly stood in the middle, standing in a proud position, an arrogant smirk on his face.

Seeing this expression filled Spyro with disgust. Yeah, it was a bit soon to judge Astrial but well, that smirk was really just unnerving. It reminded him of Cyril except in worse, much worse if that was possible. It was just the kind of expression that he thought would only appear on a monster's face.

"The Trial shall soon begin. The two must face it on their own. It will be an endurance test during which both of you will have to fulfill the condition given. The Trial continues until one can no longer accomplish the objective given. At such moment, this dragon will be confirmed to be, once and for all, the imposter whom the Prophecy told us to beware from," explained the earth Guardian.

Strange, usually it's Ignitus that does the explaining. After all, he usually took the initiatives unless it was something specific to another Guardian. So, why was Terrador doing all the explaining right now? Oh well...

He and Sparx moved on forward...

thud!

"OUCH! What was that?!?"

Spyro turned around to see that Sparx had smacked into an invisible force field of sorts.

"Sorry Spyro but Sparx must stay behind. You must face the Trial alone, I fear," said Ignitus, seeing the two's confusion as to what had happened.

So, when they had said he would face it alone, they were truly serious. In a way, it worried him a bit but then, there was no reason to truly be worried. Sparx and Cynder are just there, watching. Everything will be alright. Besides, not like he is dependant upon the dragonfly!

Huh? What?

"What's so funny?" asked Spyro, not like the way Astrial was laughing at all.

The other purple dragon stopped and then, still smirking, replied. "Oh, I just find it funny that a dragon would be dependant upon a small insect. You must truly lack bravery, that's for sure."

The insult stung, a lot but he still managed to keep himself calm as a clever reply came up. Astrial was just trying to psyche him out.

"Really? Well at least, I don't lack honor to the point of resorting to psyching my opponent out before the test begins." The reply made its effect as the other dragon's smirk disappeared instantly.

"Hmph! Speak as you will! Before long, we shall see who is the imposter and who has the favors of the Ancestors!"

A smile came to Spyro as he sat down and waited for the Guardians to give them the signal. It was then however that he noticed that well, things had went very weird. Ignitus, Terrador, Cynder, Sparx... they were nowhere to be seen. In fact, heavy fog formed a dome at the edges of the training circle and for some reason, he felt wind brushing against his scales as if he was no longer inside of the temple. What had happened? Was he still inside of the temple? How unsettling...

Then, he saw them, strange sphere of energy that hovered just out of reach, in the middle of the circle.

And then, a silent command. He must destroy the white spheres, Astrial, him, must destroy the black ones... and all of this "before the sun settles". The sun settles? This seems like a fairly huge time limit... or maybe not. He saw a faint yellow circle beyond the fog that was quickly falling.

Both himself and Astrial dashed toward the spheres and jumped to meet them. With claws, fangs, and tail swipes, the spheres were torn apart and reduced to tiny bits. Spyro moved more slowly but his attacks were faster although lacking in style, as usual. Astrial, on another hand, was the opposite. He moved as quickly as a blur but his attacks were slow, methodical, stylish... maybe too much. They seemed overblown.

The two finished about at the same time, Astrial slightly after him, the circle still surprisingly high after both were done.

Then, the circle was shot back high up and a new command came.

Fire breath on the moving targets. "Link" the targets together and form an inferno.

In a way, he had dreaded that the Trial would have involved elemental breaths but on another hand, it couldn't be helped. After all, it was what defined a dragon in a way, its breath attacks and how said dragon used them.

A real torrent of flames was spurted out of Astrial's mouth. Really, he had not imagined that such a dragon could breathe such an overwhelming stream of flames. It was as if a gigantic tornado of fire had errupted from Astrial's mouth, setting all of the targets on his side on fire. Then, he somehow managed to "tilt" the stream and forced all the targets together, uniting the flames into one gigantic inferno. His task was done and pretty much effortlessly at that.

Spyro gulped. It wouldn't be so easy for him... but well, failing is not an option.

He inhaled deeply and then breathed fire. As expected, what came out was not impressive by any means but was more than satisfying considering he's a hatchling that lost his powers, began to regain them recently, and then went through the Sign of Ruin. Still, it would not do for although he did set a single target on fire, he needed to light them all up, somehow unite the fire into an inferno, and to top it off, the yellow circle is falling fast.

Spyro figured out that maybe he wasn't too strong actually... but there was a reason why he had survived so far. Because his powers, although not the mightiest, were more than enough and he had the creativity needed to put them to good use. Well, actually, Sparx helped a lot in this case but well, he can do it very well on his own.

Seeing the targets run around, he thought about it quickly. How to light them up? They're forming a weird geometrical shape or whatever and they run around, still keeping the formation...

...got it! That's surprisingly simple, considering! If only he can do it in time and correctly...

Running quickly, he circled the targets while breathing as much fire as he could, concentrating on the outer targets. Much to his satisfaction, the targets were indeed set on fire. And now for the finishing touch...

BAM!

BAM!

BAM!

A good headbutt on each of the targets he set on fire and there you go, they're sent flying, causing the targets to slip and fall on top of each others and within a moment, the fire spreaded among the targets and caused them all to flare up like one big pile of dry wood.

Spyro stopped and turned to see the yellow circle rising back up. As Astrial stood there, eyes widened as if seriously weirded out, Spyro took the opportunity to smirk at him in defiance. Astrial's powers might be vast but he sure doesn't need any of them to do just as well!

...well, he hoped. He sure wished one of the commands will not be "defeat your opponent" for if that huge stream of fire is any indication of Astrial's power... then he's most probably almost as powerful as Cynder was which is, quite frankly, bad news.

Then, a new test came. This time, it involved electricity. Again, Astrial used an overwhelming breath attack to accomplish the objective. Again, Spyro used his creativity to accomplish it just as well despite his own limited powers, using the electricity breath's lasso-like properties to slam the targets against each others and shock all of them at once.

For each test completed, a new one was thrown at them immediately and with each new one, a more complicated objective. Soon, the objectives begun to require the use of multiple breaths and the time limit became more and more tight. Some of them even began to involve complex physical actions.

As time passed and the tests became more difficult, Astrial seemed to tire. Although his powers were obviously superior, he was using a lot of power, unleashing overblown attacks every time and no dragon had an unlimited amount of magical energy to spend on breath attacks. Spyro as well, was tiring himself... but his confidence and motivation grew with each victory. Each test completed brought him closer to Astrial's imposter status being confirmed as the other, arrogant-looking purple dragon was tiring more and more while he was doing the same.

Still, there was no time to lose concentration and focus for the tests required more and more improvisation. Although Astrial had to spend lots of energy, time was not an issue for him since his breath attacks were so great. Spyro, he, had to run, jump, bash, and throw the targets, spheres, and himself about like crazy to do it all on time. Many times, the yellow circle was almost gone when he was done.

Overall, the whole Trial seemed to come to a stalemate, no one really winning nor losing.

Then, after a while, the tests stopped coming.

Panting, the two dragons stood there, looking at each others... and Spyro slowly shook his head. All of this... and still no winner. Maybe... that there truly are two Dragons of Prophecy, after all? Both of them had made it this far and there were no signs of a winner yet...

"Astrial... I... I think that maybe we should stop here. I know that you said that there can be only one of us but well... maybe the Prophecy is wrong. Why don't we work together rather than keeping this up?" he asked when he managed to get a grip of his burning lungs.

The other, larger purple dragon breathed hard and then, managed to catch his breath as well. Then, the look he gave Spyro almost made him yelp in surprise and fear. The glare Astrial gave him... it was one of pure, total, feral rage.

"You... you DARE to imply that the Prophecy might be wrong? You dare to question the Ancestors?!? Blasphemy!"

Then, finally, one last command came to them. In silence, it was announced as a tie-breaker.

The two had to prove that they were the true Dragon of Prophecy by proving that they had followed the ancient ways and were in-tune with the Ancestors. Through listening to the Ancestors, they would infuse them with the divine knowledge of the breath attack they would have to use.

Well, sounds easy. After all, in times of crisis, strange memories and instincts always came to him, telling him of what to do. All he had to do is open his heart and allow the Ancestors to tell him what to do as usual.

Thus, Spyro closed his eyes and cleared his mind...

Relaxing, he closed his mind to his own instincts, allowing his memories to flee his mind and forgetting everything for a moment, opening his soul to his fate. All that he had to do was to act once he would remember what his ancient, sacred blood already knows...

FWOOOOOOSH!

Spyro heard a strange sound. He didn't pay it any attention. He was in a kind of trance, waiting.

...and after a moment, a realization came to him.

There was silence.

No words, no memories, no thoughts, no instincts came to him, only silence. He opened his eyes to see Astrial, floating in mid-air, surrounding by swirling beams of pure light, his mouth wide open as he breathed a gigantic funnel of white holy winds toward the sky. To the sides, the yellow circle was almost gone.

...and then, a cold, horrific feeling crept up Spyro's spine and he realized one thing.

The knowledge did not come and time's almost up.

The temptation to panic became strong, extremely strong. His nerves threatened to give away, his limbs shaking out of control. If he didn't manage to unleash this kind of breath attack in the next seconds then he... he...

NO!

This will not happen! This is impossible! He... he did not do all of this only for... for...

He chased all thoughts away and sent his body upward, now standing on only his hindlegs as he dived back into his trance.

He had let it all get to him. He is the Dragon of Prophecy, all he have to do is have faith. He will open his mouth and he will unleash the kind of breath attack he is expected to unleash without fail.

He inhaled deeply... and then, breathed with all of his strength.

...and nothing came out.

The fog disappeared at this moment and Spyro, losing his balance, tripped and fell on his side.

Everything seemed so... unreal... so... ridiculous. A nightmare, definitely. His entire body was hurting and aching from the effort and he felt so... tired. He was not sure the fog had disappeared entirely actually. In fact, had it even been real to begin with?

He saw two faces from up close, both pairs of eyes filled with worries. A black dragon's and a dragonfly's. Both of them were speaking to him...

"You're okay buddy? Spyro? Are you okay?" he barely heard the dragonfly. His words made so little sense if at all...

...and then, there was the other three...

The smaller one looked at him with such disgust... it was crazy. There was nothing but disgust in its eyes...

Disappointment was in the red figure's eyes while the green one seemed... well, he couldn't even think of a word to describe such an expression. It was so... strange.

Some sounds... and then, words. He thought he recognized the voice, he was not sure. He looked up and then, he saw him... Ignitus, looking down at him.

"Ignitus... I... I think I had a nightmare. I'm the purple dragon, isn't it? I'm... I'm the Dragon of Prophecy, am I not?"

He remained silent... so deathly silent.

"Spyro... I will ask you to leave." The reply came too late to his liking. He didn't like that long pause Ignitus had. He disliked deeply that sad tone, that disappointment.

Yet, that sentence woke up hope within him... for maybe he would send him somewhere, anywhere, to discover what went wrong or something?

"Sending him off to find out why the Trial went wrong, heh?" That was Sparx, speaking his thoughts aloud.

"No. He's not setting out to find out why the Trial went wrong. The Trial went out... perfectly." Huh? What? Perfectly? What is he talking about?

"So... why are you sending him out then, old guy?"

"I'm not sending him out. Spyro, from this moment on, is banished forever."

At this moment, Spyro wished for only one thing.

For the Ancestors to grant his prayers and either to awaken him from his nightmare right here and now or to take mercy upon him and kill him on the spot.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	3. Trial

OFF: Took a while but the next chapter is ready! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 2: Trial**

Fate is a cruel host, quick to judge and smite. Only the truly strong will brave the Trial.

* * *

He didn't know how he managed to get back or why he did so. Frankly, he didn't care, not anymore at least. He was not even sure the original reason was real to begin with, considering how little of it he remembers.

All that he knew was that the night had erased all of his worries and the pain. In fact, it had erased the reality of the nightmare and he wondered if it had only been a taunt from the Dark Master. After all, ever since he went to Convexity, he sometimes had those strange visions, seeing this shadow that looked at him.

He remembered seeing a shadow last night... but he didn't remember too well. What he remembers is that it shocked him beyond belief and that he forgot all about it because he didn't want to remember. It was not horrible nor scary... it was just... he didn't remember.

So, there he is, after long hours of walking. He has braved the road that was once scary and unknown to him and in a way, was still fairly mysterious. All this time spent near the Dragon Temple and he had almost forgot about the vast expenses of swamplands that surround the Dragon Temple... the place that used to be his home.

In a way, nostalgia had a way of coming up regardless of age. Although he was young, he couldn't help but have a fuzzy feeling as he felt the touch of the humid ground, smelt the strange smell of the giant mushrooms, and was once again surrounded by the strange ethereal atmosphere of the swamps, spores and magical energies swirling freely into the air endlessly.

This was where he was born, where his egg had been found and had hatched. It was in those swamps that he spent most of his young life, playing with Sparx, living innocently.

In a way, he regretted it. He regretted leaving all of this behind.

Four months and he had already fought so much. The blood of so many were on his claws and although he found solace in the fact that he was protecting people and were destroying maniacal monsters, it didn't matter that no matter how insane the expressions of the Dark Ones were, the pain on their faces when he was killing them was genuine and real.

Do the Dark Ones have families? Can they love? Can they feel? Can they have friends? Do they think of something else than the Dark Master and mad plans of world domination?

Maybe he will never find out...

He stopped and looked around. He recognized the trees, the mushrooms, the hills. He was back home... back to the place he originated from.

...why did he come here? Why did he return? Weren't Sparx, Ignitus, Cynder, and all the others back at the temple? Wouldn't they need him?

He had a slight glimpse of a memory. He saw himself, slowly walking away, head hanging low, totally delirious. He saw unknown figures staring at him as he walked away. Half of them, the taller ones, stared at him in a disapproving way. The other smaller ones stared at him, their eyes filled with pity and sadness. Then, there was this single figure. A figure whose eyes only shown emptiness and a superficial disgust.

The memory was so vague and yet, stung harder than any known Dark One weapon.

He is Spyro, a purple dragon, a very special creature. He's also the Dragon of Prophecy...

But then, he had this strange nightmare. A "Trial" during which he had to use a weird breath attack involving a big gust of white wind... an attack he was not able to unleash. Supposedly, it proved that he was an imposter and was deeply evil.

He, deeply evil? Please! Didn't he, like, saved their necks so many times and because he wanted to, not seeking some silly rewards he wouldn't have an use for?

This was all so silly.

What is he doing here? Ignitus will probably scold him for going out on his own like this.

But on another hand... how long has it been, really?

He approached the trees, slowly stepping into the damp waters. He felt the murky waters up to his ankles. He felt the soft, warm mud under his paws and remembered. He brought his right paw out of the waters and touched the tree's base. How many times did he and Sparx play hide and seek here? He lost count so long ago...

Smiling, Spyro decided to turn back and return to the temple. After all, that truly wasn't his style. He sounds just like Ignitus right now with all of the recollecting and the drama and what not. Oh well...

He turned back and headed back toward the Dragon Temple. They're waiting for him...

* * *

"Aw man, can you just respond to even ONE reply? You're no fun!"

Astrial gritted his teeth. How did the imposter manage to endure that infernal insect was anyone's guess. The purple dragon guessed that this "Spyro" or whatever the usurper was named had been personally infused with pure patience or whatever by the Dark Master himself because that well, he couldn't imagine that anything less from the Dark Master's very poisonous power could create a creature insane enough to endure that dragonfly. It just wasn't possible.

"For the last time, I am NOT a public entertainer. Now, I apologize if I sound rude but I will ask you to SHUT IT while I'm trying to fulfill my duties as the Dragon of Prophecy! Geez!" almost barked Astrial, his left eye twitching a bit.

"Hey! No need to get all worked up! Besides, not my fault if you're like, as interesting to watch as grass! I mean, come on!" Man! Does that stupid bug EVER shut up? He just tells him to shut it and there he goes, moaning and whining all over again!

"ENOUGH!" Astrial yelled.

Sparx fell silent, the only sound being heard at this moment being the cries of birds in the distance that flew away, scared by Astrial's sudden scream of rage.

"The only reason I even TOLERATE your presence is that the great Ignitus asked me to! If it was just from me, you shouldn't even be here! You are a dragonfly, not a dragon! You belong among other dragonflies, not among my proud and mighty people! So, please stop raping my poor ears at once!" Sparx just hovered there, arms crossed, eyes narrowed, largely unimpressed by Astrial's outburst.

"Hmph. Fine, miiiiiister "Dragon of Propheeeeiceeeey"!" replied Sparx, more annoyed than anything else.

"DRAGON OF PROPHECY! Not "Prophacy" or "Propheicey"! Prophecy! PROPHECY!!!" yelled the purple dragon, his nerves obviously snapping.

"Fine fine! Calm down! What did they feed you this morning? Enraged Charge Beast meat? Sheesh!"

With this said, the two continued on their way. Sparx did not understand why Astrial even bothered. The Sign of Whatever is scrapped and the Dark Master has now no way of returning to life... well, last he knows. So... why are they out there?

Besides, Astrial has a very different style and well, that's not for the better. Spyro was maybe a bit too much of a savior boy but at least, he made a good conversation and well, he was entertaining. He maybe didn't have a "perfect" fighting style but he knew how to improvise and every single foe he finished off, he gave it his personal touch. Astrial? You saw him beat up one Dark One, you saw him beat all of them. Furthermore, wherever Spyro was curious, searching every nook and cranny as he walked around, Astrial was completely focused on the set, beaten path and even went as far as ignoring blatantly suspicious alternate paths and caves. Even without such things, Spyro's usual blunders and misadventures were more than enough to keep things unpredictable. Astrial was about as predictable as they come. All in all, Sparx wasn't joking; watching Astrial at work is about as interesting as watching grass grow.

Heck, he couldn't even make fun of Astrial's SOLE interesting point, his funny way of talking, without causing Astrial to become enraged and throw a tantrum until he agreed to shut up.

Oh well...

More boredom, more walking, more wondering why the heck he agreed to follow that Astrial dude...

But then, a pleasant sight came to enlighten Sparx's day.

A runt of a purple dragon walking down the path... a 'lil runt Sparx would recognize any day!

"Hey! Spyro!" called happily the dragonfly.

And then, for once, Astrial did something he had not predicted. However, at this moment, he wished he hadn't.

Spyro indeed noticed Sparx and went to wave at him when Astrial pounced and placed himself just in front of the smaller purple dragon, right claw pointing at his throat.

"You will not make even one more step, exile!" said Astrial.

Spyro couldn't help but sweatdrop, wondering why the other purple dragon was doing that.

"HEY! What is that for? That's Spyro, my old bud!" said Sparx, visibly upset at the turn of event.

Astrial remained silent for a moment before speaking up.

"It doesn't matter. He is the imposter, a threat to us and the world. He is the fake brought forth by the Dark Master to doom the world."

While all of this was going on, a realization finally struck Spyro and slowly, a feeling of horror rose back in his mind.

So... it had not been an illusion nor a nightmare. The Trial really did happen and he really did lose. He had really been labeled a monster and banished from the Dragon Temple.

...and after everything he did for them and for everyone. After all the efforts, the pain, the suffering... this was how he was thanked.

Because he lost a single contest.

Simply because he couldn't muster the power to do that single little breath attack, he is a spawn of the Dark Master, an enemy of the world? Because of this, his friends must disown him? No... this is ridiculous, unheard of! He shall not take it this way. He refuses it!

"You are wrong," he replied to Astrial's accusation.

Astrial glared at him. "What did you say?"

Spyro shook his head, feeling the horror give away, replaced with motivation. He doesn't care if that Trial labeled him as an imposter! He is the true Dragon of Prophecy! He is the one that repelled the Dark Master! He is the one that fought for everyone's sakes! He doesn't care if a little test says otherwise! He will protect his friends no matter what.

"You are wrong. I am the Dragon of Prophecy. I have repelled the Dark Master, protecting my friends from his evil influence. I'll keep on doing so as long as there is life inside of me! I don't care about what you think or say!"

Astrial's expression changed to a deep frown. "What? How dare you! You imposter! Spawn of Dark Master!"

"Give it up, Astrial! Spyro has been fighting all this time while you've been hiding in that 'lil statue of yours and even with the exile status, he'll keep on truckin'. You can't keep him down, face it!" said Sparx, smiling before turning to his adoptive brother. "Come on, Spyro! You've been missing for a day and already, the temple's all bleak. I'm sure Cynder will be glad to see you and that Ignitus will find something for you to do!"

"The imposter's lies does not fool me! The Prophecy does not lie. I am the Dragon of Prophecy and you, Spyro, are the imposter! The imposter will do great things, the Prophecy says, but in the end, his true loyalty lies with the Dark Master! I will not be fooled!" Astrial's speech caused Sparx and Spyro to both roll their eyes, both of them sighing at the same time.

"Look... I--" Spyro could not finish his sentence however.

SLASH!

"OW!"

Astrial had swiped at Spyro's face with his claws and then, after that, things went very quickly.

SLASH!  
SLASH!  
SMACK!  
SLASH!  
BAM!

"OOOOOW!"

BAM!

Astrial executed the finishing blow of his combo, sending Spyro slamming straight into the nearest tree. Sparx hovered there, eyes widened, unable to believe that Astrial had actually dared attack Spyro despite him repeating that he didn't mean any harm and only wanted to help everyone.

Although the world spun quite a bit, Spyro managed to shake off most of the dizziness away and then, got back on his feet. That had hurt quite a bit to be sure. He knew that the other purple dragon's claws had made clean cuts on his left cheek and that he was bleeding. He could also feel his side hurting from being sent slamming into the tree. Still, he had suffered worse.

As he got up, the hatchling turned to see Astrial standing there in a battle stance, waiting for him to charge. As if he was there to fight him...

"Hey! What was that for? What's your problem, dude? He wants to help and that's how you answer?" Sparx said, visibly upset about the issue. Spyro couldn't blame him. Sparx had a reason to be upset after all.

Astrial remained silent, staring intently at Spyro. The way he looked at him... it was not one of hatred nor arrogance. It was just the calmness of a serious warrior, one whose feelings were not linked to his battle skills. Well, Astrial will be disappointed.

"I'm not here to fight you, Astrial. If you take it this way... then so be it. But I want you to know that I will not stand idle. I won't let the result of a test dictate what I can and cannot do and believe in. Goodbye, Astrial."

And with that said, Spyro turned around and left the scene quietly. Sparx watched, an awful feeling creeping up on his soul as his brother left.

"Hmph! The coward runs away. He shouldn't imagine that he will get away so easily however! Good shall triumph! The imposter shall be smote in the name of the Ancestors!"

Astrial's final reply as Spyro left made another awful feeling rise within Sparx: Burning, boiling anger!

"Man! Don't you understand ANYTHING?!?" spat Sparx, throwing his arms up in despair and annoyance. "Pfft! You're SO lame! I'm going with him!"

Astrial glared at Sparx angrily. "If you do so, I shall burn you into a little pile of ashes, traitor!"

Sparx crossed his arms, obviously not believing Astrial. But then, his expression quickly changed into a nervous smile upon seeing Astrial's own expression. He seemed dead serious on top of being deathly annoyed.

"I am not lying. If you turn your back upon us and join with the Dark Master's spawn, you shall suffer the same fate as he."

Although Sparx considered telling that Astrial dude to shove his stupid opinion where the sun doesn't shine, the fact that this crazy purple dragon would fry him for it was a fact not to be ignored.

But still... he couldn't leave Spyro like that.

...who is he kidding? Spyro is not going to give up that easily. He's sure he'll run into him again eventually.

"Ignitus shall hear about your hesitation, dragonfly! You can be sure he will know of your shaky loyalty to the Ancestors!"

Oh great. Not only is he stupid but he's going to rant on.

"I'm going back to the temple."

With that said, Sparx decided to fly back toward the Dragon Temple before the urge to punch that purple jerk in the snout overwhelmed him. That jerk can stay outside and be a bully all he wants! One thing is sure and it's that he wants nothing to do with it! That Astrial is even worse than those Dark One freaks! Geez!

* * *

Anger clawed at Spyro's heart, leaving him with a feeling of his entire body burning. He just kept moving farther and farther from the Dragon Temple, going nowhere... not that he cared.

He couldn't believe this. This Astrial dragon, judging him like this after all he did... He claims to believe in Ignitus and what he says... and yet, he still label him as an enemy, even after he saved the world from the Dark Master countless times? Not only that but he doesn't even give him a chance to see his friends? What kind of monster is Astrial?

Astrial... the more he thought of him, the more he felt the anger rise up... but also other feelings.

Dark Ones rose... and as usual, they pounced, pointing their weapons at him.

Spyro usually felt a mix of fear, excitement, confidence, and all other feelings when the time to fight came but for some reason, the appearance of the ape-like creatures brought forth none of those feelings. Rather, he felt a strange calmness, a fake calmness. Inside him, an inferno raged and demanded, screamed for blood.

He felt so strangely calm despite it all... but when the Dark Ones came in range, he suddenly exploded.

The hatchling roared with more rage than he had thought he could and his body almost moved on his own as he proceeded to tear through the Dark Ones.

He did not simply kill his foes as usual... no... he slaughtered them.

He clawed at them and gripped at their innards, digging into their flesh with incredible ferocity. Usually, the thirst for blood would be quenched quickly enough after battle had begun... but in this case, he only felt himself become more and more berserk.

Yet, killing those foes gave him no satisfaction. In fact, it was even worse. The inferno within him left him with a hollow, unbearable feeling and gave way to frustration, making his rage grow.

The more enraged he felt, the more violent the deaths he gave to his foes... and the more violent he became, the emptier he felt. It was an infernal, unbearable vacuum of rage... and of another feeling. He knew for her felt them... the tears that escaped his eyes and clouded his vision even further.

He didn't know how long he fought but when he was done, his scales had basically changed color, painted crimson from all the blood of his fallen enemies. That was not new to him but what felt new was the total despair and horror that filled him. When he finished killing his foes and found himself alone, he finally realized that he was completely, totally alone, that Sparx wasn't there, that Ignitus wasn't there, that Cynder wasn't there, and that they would not come.

He was alone and he felt so lonely...

It had been only a short while true but... just the fact that he would never be allowed to see them ever again because Astrial was the "real" one dug into his heart and made it hurt to such a degree that it was unbearable.

Because of that stupid Astrial. Because of that stupid Prophecy.

It didn't matter if he had done so much, it didn't matter if he wanted to help. It was all in vain...

"S-S-S-Spyro..."

The voice... ever since he returned from Convexity, he had heard it.

Was it... truly him? Was it truly... the Dark Master? The one he is supposedly destined to serve, now that he is nothing more than a copy?

"S-S-S-Spyro..."

That stupid Dark Master! He hates him! Him and all of the darkness he brings to the people! It's because of him that the world suffers and that people like Astrial can get away with what they do! It's because of him that the world needs a Prophecy!

Spyro wiped the tears and stood tall above the pile of fallen Dark Ones, his eyes glowing in both hatred and sorrow. Yet, he wasn't going to snap. May he suffer a thousands tortures! He will NEVER serve that monster!

"Stop calling to me! I will never serve you! NEVER!!!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, voicing it all out.

... and with that out of his mind, all of the walking and fighting that he went through finally caught up with his body and slammed into his mind like an one ton weight. Growling a bit, Spyro felt all strength leaving him and slowly fell off the pile of corpses, eyes closing, drifting into the world of dreams before he had even hit the ground, an impact which he never actually felt.

* * *

Slowly, Spyro opened his eyes. His throat still felt dry and he still felt awful but at least, his heart was okay and he was no longer tired. It wasn't much of a consolation but well, that was how it was.

And then, at this moment, Spyro did something that was quite unexpected.

He laughed.

He just lied down there, laughing.

Not because of pain or anything dramatic like that. He just laughed. Why?

Because he realized how stupid he had been.

Good thing Sparx hadn't been there! What a drama trip that had been! He had acted like a total idiot, taking it all so seriously.

Truly, what was he thinking?

As if he had lost his friends! It was not because Astrial was paranoid that all of his friends would suddenly start calling him an enemy! He truly doubted that Ignitus would truly, genuinely dismiss him as "the imposter" after all he did, too.

Speaking of Ignitus... he remembered his face when he pronounced the judgement of exile. He remembered his sadness and well, that is not something he liked.

He is the Dragon of Prophecy, that is sure. All that he has to do is find a way to prove that the results of that little contest didn't mean anything.

...but how?

Cynder was turned back to normal months ago and the Dark Master's masterplan is foiled so, what can he do?

...there are still a lot of Dark Ones around, all of them just as fanatical as the next. Surely, the Dark Master must have more than just one general. Cynder mustn't have been the only one. Besides, someone must have led the Dark Ones before Cynder was corrupted. It was just common sense.

If he could find that commander and drive back the last of the Dark Ones, it would ensure peace for the world. Finally, everyone would be able to live without fear of the Dark Master, his forces finally gone and all chances of him returning gone.

The purple dragon got up, a mischievous grin on his face. So, Astrial thinks he can keep him down? Well, so be it. He doesn't need his approval to do as he will.

The time for the end of the reign of terror has come. He shall seek out the evil one and take him out.

...but first, he needs to figure out who and where he is.

Well, Ignitus has the ability to have visions, isn't it? If only he could get the elderly Guardian to do this for him...

...but then, why would Ignitus refuse to do such a thing?

It's no use in assuming things. He will return to the temple and worry about how it will go later.

* * *

Sparx hovered near the middle of the room, staring at the four Guardians. He had absolutely no idea why they remained like this, silent for who knows why. All of them had this blank, stupid expression on their face except for Ignitus who sat in front of the weird green glowing pond in the middle, staring down at it. His expression was that of pure, sheer horror. Why so? What was he saying? Of course, no one answered him, busy as they were. After all, staring blankly into space is suuuuch an important thing to do!

But well, he won't give up! That big lizard saw something in that pond and he'll make sure he spill the beans!

"So... why the long face? Saw somethin'?" sure, it was not the grandest nor most attention-grabbing line ever but well, he was not the type to throw super super lines at people. He just spoke his mind out, that's all... and well, that felt appropriate at the time.

And then, at long last, after nearly a hour of staring, Ignitus finally turned to Sparx.

"Good! So, why do you seem as if you had seen some kind of monster in there? What did you see?"

There was silence. Great, more silence. And for a moment, he hoped that...

"I saw... the final Prophecy fulfilled."

Huh?... ha! Finally, something to work with! Final Prophecy!

"So... what's the final Prophecy? I mean... is it showing Spyro coming back to the temple? The Dark Master's booty kicked? That stuck-up Astrial shown who's boss? The world at peace or something?"

Ignitus closed his eyes, as if thinking. What was wrong with him? Wasn't the Prophecy a good thing? After all, Spyro was a part of it and he was destined to beat up all the bad guys so... why did he have the face that he usually had when he was about to give them bad news?

And then, Ignitus begun to shake his head, as if deciding against something before turning to Sparx.

"Sparx... the gate to the Dark Realm will open very soon and the Dark Master will return. The time for the final battle has come. The Dragon of Destiny and the Dark Master will fight one last time and the fate of the world will depend on this battle's outcome."

Ha, well, that explains it. Ignitus was not known to be a very optimistic dragon, that's for sure! He's just worried about it all...

...so, the time has come to fight the Dark Master. Sounds fun! Really, he should be terrorized and well, frankly, he's feeling his entire body freezing with terror at the idea of finally seeing the Dark Master in the flesh but well... he was alongside Spyro the whole time when he confronted Cynder and then later, that crazy sheep robot! He's used to it... sorta.

"We must call Astrial and tell him of this. The Dragon of Prophecy must know." said Terrador, the Guardians suddenly coming to life.

Astrial, always that stupid Astrial! Sparx was sick of that moron already!

"Indeed we must..." said Ignitus slowly... but then, at this moment, he moved closer to Sparx...

"The mountain of Malefor to the north-east of here, in the corrupt swamplands. The gate is within the Temple of Souls located in the caves under the mountain. Please tell Spyro this... and tell him that I... I believe in him."

For a moment, Sparx was surprised. Did Ignitus just faked out looking at the ceiling as he sometimes did for apparently no reason in order to whisper to him, telling him to tell Spyro, whom he banished himself, that he wanted him, not Astrial, to face the Dark Master?

Sparx was shocked and hovered there for a moment... but then, he finally managed to get ahold of himself. He should have known it! He knew it that it was weird of the Guardians, who had been saved by Spyro, respected him, and all that to suddenly turn their back upon Spyro!

Although Ignitus should have maybe, you know, not banished Spyro rather than do this, he guessed it will have to do.

Smiling, Sparx slowly hovered away from them and then, flew away quickly. Guess it's now time for the final journey...

"S-S-Spyro..." a mysterious voice echoed in Cynder's head as she saw Sparx zoom by in the next room. She knew where he was going... and she had this feeling that she had to follow him.

Sparx did not notice Cynder following him. Neither of the two noticed Astrial watching them as they left the temple either...

* * *

Slowly, the sun begun to set, the darkness of dusk beginning to rise, progressively covering the world in a blanket of darkness...

Sparx, Cynder, and Astrial had already left.

The Guardians' task was finally done. All that was left was for them to watch destiny be fulfilled...

Yet, Ignitus was not at peace. He sat near the entrance of the temple, looking into the horizon...

Slowly, Volteer stepped out of the temple and sat next to his old friend, smiling. He stared at the red dragon for a while before turning to the horizon.

"There is no use in worrying, Ignitus! His failure in the Trial was nothing but an effect of unpredictable, irrelevant factors. Spyro has made this far, Ignitus. He has overcome foes which we, ourselves, had believed to be invincible for so many years. I do not doubt one second that he will overcome the Dark Master and bring order to this world."

Ignitus slowly turned and listened silently as Volteer spoke and then, when he was done, he slowly turned back to the horizon...

"Maybe so... but it is the Prophecy itself that worry me. Its final part... we were never able to decypher it properly, the last part of the Prophecy writen in such a way that none of us could never even get an idea of what it meant."

"I know, I know! Much theories and interpretations about the final part! Everything will be alright, believe me! The chances of Spyro succeeding are significantly greater than those of him failing!" replied Volteer, remaining optimistic.

Yet, Volteer's reply did not calm the elderly red dragon. He just watched the sunset, wondering about the Prophecy and its true, final meaning...

"I know... I just hope that... he will come back alright."

Volteer became silent as the red dragon said that one last line. That sad, lonely expression on Ignitus's face... an expression that he hid from the other Guardians and all the others. He knew why he had this face and to what memories this expression was linked...

"I'm sure she is watching over him even now..." said Volteer absentmindedly.

The two dragons stood there, watching the night come over to them. This will be a long night. They just hoped that it wouldn't be Spyro's last.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	4. Faith

OFF: The next chapter of Prophecy is released!

Hopefully, it was worth the wait. Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 3: Faith**  
Evil feed upon Doubt and Despair. In the face of overwhelming odds, Hope and Faith will lead to the future.

* * *

"S-S-S-Spyro..." the voice echoed yet again.

He had this strange feeling, as if he had heard the voice somewhere. Every time he heard the Dark Master call to him, the voice became clearer and louder, as if he was getting closer. The purple dragon didn't know what this meant exactly but he suspected it could only mean that the evil one was growing closer to returning to this world, an act which he will prevent without fail. There is no alternative. Call to him as he will, the Dark Master will get nothing from him... well, he will get something actually it's just that he will most likely not like it at all.

"Hey! Spyro!" and at this moment, he smiled, seeing his friend flying toward him.

Sparx stopped right in front of the purple dragon, grinning as he hovered there, arms crossed.

"So, missed me big guy?" asked the dragonfly.

Spyro's smile turned into a big grin. Yes, yes was he happy! But well, to tackle into the dragonfly and give him a big hug would be very much against his personality so he simply stood there, smiling.

"Not really. Who would like a loud dragonfly pestering you all the time after all!" he replied.

"Very funny! Anyway, me and the old man were chattin' and well, he figured out that the whole Trial proving you're not the hero was stupid so... here I am, with fresh infos right from the old guy's newest visions!" said the dragonfly, clearing seeing through the dragon's sarcasm.

New infos, right? "So, what did Ignitus say?"

Sparx seemed to think for a moment and then, made a silly pose, as if imitating a detective of sorts.

"Hmmm... he spoke of a murder case! Dark Master, at the Temple of Souls under Mountain Malefor to the north-east, with the fire breath, by Spyro the dragon!" Informative and funny. Well, for once, it was genuinely funny and thus, Spyro's smile widened further.

Temple of Souls, under the Mountain of Malefor to the north-east...

"I see. So... the Dark Master is attempting to return?"

"Actually, Ignitus is saying that this will be the final battle. It's you or him, this time. No more revivals or stupid fake final battles against random underlings! About time, if you ask me. I think you'll agree we've waited a bit too long before kicking the Dark Master's booty, whatever the heck he is." Spyro couldn't agree more.

"So, the time has finally come. The time to confront the Dark Master himself..." The time to accomplish his destiny.

At this moment, a hint of doubt rose within his heart and he remembered how the Trial ended. And what if... he truly didn't wield the power necessary to defeat the Dark Master? He remembered Cynder and that Sheepaminator, those creations of the Dark Master. If the Dark Master was truly as god-like as they make him to be, if he's truly powerful enough to make his best generals look like harmless animals... then how will he manage to defeat such an enemy? He barely survived both of those battles...

...what is he thinking? He has defeated the Dark Master's best minions and foiled his masterplan. He has totally changed the situation, breaking the Dark Master's hold over the world. The Dark Master had defeated the dragons and brought the entire world on its knees... and now, the situation had been inverted, a purple dragon single-handedly breaking the Dark Master's ranks, killing his best generals, and destroying the weapon he had planned to use to conquer the world once and for all.

The time has come. He must finish what he has started. Spyro regained his confidence, throwing his doubt away. He is not afraid. He shall go forward fearlessly.

"I'm not afraid. Let's go," said the dragon, his tone full of determination.

"Go to the Dark Master's very fortress, the very most unholy place in the entire universe, the place where the most evil force of all existence awaits our arrival so it can tear us apart savagely and mercilessly?" said the dragonfly, his fear apparent.

...and then, Sparx did something unusual. Rather than trying to convince Spyro not to go, he shook off his fear and agreed.

"Why not? Not like I can stop you from going... so, yeah, count me in!"

The dragonfly flew next to Spyro's head and hovered there, at his usual position.

"Lead the way, big guy!"

Spyro nodded and pushed into the ground with his claws, standing tall. He felt confident and strong. Finally... the end was in sight. The purple dragon looked into the horizon, seeing the markers placed in ancient time by dragons long gone. North-east... he shall go there. The final battle awaits.

* * *

SCHLANG!

"No, let her pass. She is... an old friend."

The dozens of Dark Ones glared venomously at the newcomer but despite their burning rage, managed to get a hold of themselves and slowly, got out of the way, putting their weapons back in their holsters.

Within the deepest chamber of the Temple of Souls, a positively massive figure stood by the central hole in the middle, a hole that emitted faint, eerie light. One could see the souls constantly coming from the hole in the ceiling, sucked into the endless abyss...

The figure slowly turned to face the newcomer and despite the fact that the room was plunged in total darkness, Cynder recognized the figure instantly.

"So you have returned..." his voice was every bit as cold and cruel as she remembered. A huge contrast with the tone of the common Dark One, which was overly excited and insane-sounding.

But then, this was no common Dark One. The being was still a Dark One, one could tell... but the amount of black magic it had absorbed was so gigantic that it had grown to humongous proportions and had begun to transform into something else. One could see the patches of fur that had disappeared, revealing the green scales below. One could see the hint of the claws at the end of its hands and feet, hidden by its armor. Even its face had mutated, half of its face now disformed into something else, its right eye glowing unnaturally, like a crimson red jewel.

The massive Dark One observed the young dragoness carefully and then, nodded a bit before speaking up.

"I had heard reports that the purple dragon had 'broken the Dark Master's control over you' from various soldiers that used to serve under you... and yet, you have returned. You must understand that I am suspicious, seeing a traitor return like this..."

Cynder smiled bitterly, shaking her head.

"You know very well that I was never controlled. He is a father to me, as he is to all of us. I crave his return just as all of you do. But such is not the question..."

She slowly approached the center hole and then, looked down into it. One could see the portal to the Dark Realm below, the stone circle glowing as the gate was showing signs that it would soon open...

"It's so ironic. I spent two years trying to get through the seal of Convexity... and the portal to the Dark Realm had been hidden within the Temple of Souls, free of any seals, for all this time. If only I had known that the Well of Souls was the most direct entrance to the Dark Realm..."

The Dark One was silent as Cynder spoke and when she finished, trailing off into a sentence she did not need to end, he spoke up yet again.

"You have changed, Cynder. The way you speak of the Master and his return... you lack the passion that you once had. The faith that you had in him, I cannot hear it in your voice anymore."

Cynder glared at the monkey-esque figure in a way that only her adult self should have been able to, a piercing, terrifying glare that went through you, filling you with pure, raw, numbing terror.

The glare didn't have any effect upon the Dark One however. There wasn't much if anything that could scare a creature such as him.

"Please spare me your speeches, Gaul. I know very well why you seek to bring him back. I know where your true loyalties lie. So, do not lecture me about any lack of faith when you have none yourself." she snapped coldly in a way that sounded way more like her former adult self than her current, hatchling self.

In fact, the way Cynder moved and acted was so strange. She was still the little hatchling Spyro had saved at Convexity and yet, there was something in her attitude and movements that were more akin to the oversized monster Spyro had overcome. It was truly strange, to say the least...

The two just stood there, staring at each others, not a word being said... and then, both of them looked into the skies.

"Soon, the moons will be aligned and the Night of Eternal Darkness will begin. The Master's return is near, Cynder. Yes... very near..." He turned back to Cynder, who returned his stare. "You are the one chosen by the Dark Master, the one who will open the portal. Regardless of our opinions, we shall cooperate, just like we used to, years ago..."

Cynder turned away from him, a feeling of disgust creeping up as well as another one... sadness.

"He... would have disapproved of you..." she muttered to herself, too low for Gaul to hear.

* * *

"Whoa. Creepy..."

Spyro couldn't help but agree. The Mountain of Malefor, in all of its glory, was before them. A massive spike, its top covered in dark clouds, that extended nearly endlessly into the skies, like a monstrous, grotesquely disformed tower of sorts.

And well, not only was the mountain itself a sight but the entire place felt so... unnatural. Maybe it was the green, glowing swampwaters and the fact that the dirt was purple. Maybe it was the total lack of life. Maybe it was the dead trees all around the place.

Whatever it was, this place inspired the two with dread.

"Not the most friendly place, huh?" said the dragon, his voice shaking a bit from the fear that was creeping up his spine.

"Not going to argue with you. Say, it is me or is it lacking in guards? You know... I expected a better welcoming party. This IS the Dark Master's fortress, after all," replied Sparx, who was getting more and more creeped out by the unsettling silence.

...and then, the usual sounds echoed. The yells of the Dark Ones and the sounds of footsteps. Spyro narrowed his eyes and sighed loudly, fear giving away to annoyance.

"I really should shut up sometimes..." whispered the dragonfly under his breath.

And then, they came.

A HUMONGOUS flood of Dark Ones. Monkey warriors as far as the eye can see, forming a tight blanket of screaming things at the base of the mountain.

Both the purple dragon and yellow dragonfly stood there, eyes widened, unable to keep their jaw in place.

"Oh. My. Goodness!" was all Spyro could manage to think of.

"And I thought that there were lots of mushrooms in the swamp... man, there's enough of those stupid apes to conquer the Realm fifteen times in a row!" added Sparx.

And well, it was true. There was probably a billion Dark Ones, all forming a massive blanket at the base of the mountain... and well, more and more Dark Ones flooded the ranks by the second, causing the circle around the mountain to extend toward the two...

"So... how are we going to get by THOSE?" asked Sparx, absolutely stumped as to what to do. Yeah, Spyro could beat up a lot of stuff... but well, that is more than even he could handle and by far.

Spyro found himself unable to say anything. Really, it's true. How in the heck is he going to get by such a ridiculously oversized army? Not even with the Guardians and the soldiers of all the tribes he ever freed at his side would he be able to get through. Seems like he'll have to find another route or something...

Then, more footsteps, closer this time.

Both dragon and dragonfly turned to see an equally surprising sight.

"Huh? What? What is THAT guy doing here?" said Sparx. The situation was bad enough, as if they needed HIM to barge in!

Astrial glared at the both of them.

"What troubles you so? Realizing that your allies, the Dark Ones, are not in a large enough number to stop me? That your efforts are doomed, spawn of Dark Master?" Oh no! Sparx won't have any of that!

"Cut it out, idiot! For the last time, we're all on the same side! We want to see the Dark Master beaten as much as everyone else!" replied the dragonfly, not wishing to get into an argument. Not now, at least.

But then, the other purple dragon snorted loudly, as if insulted.

"HMPH! I won't believe your lies! The Ancestors will triumph and you two, servants of Dark Master, will suffer the wrath of justice!"

Spyro shrugged and then turned his back to Astrial. He had no time to waste with that lookalike, none!

"Ignore him, Sparx. We have to find a way to get through that barricade." said Spyro.

Sparx glared at Astrial for a while and although the temptation was strong to say something, he figured out that Spyro was right. There was no use in wasting time with that wannabe. They had to find a way to get through the Dark Ones' barricade.

As the two begun to discuss of nonsensical plans, Astrial frowned. How dare they ignore him! He is the Dragon of Prophecy, no one ignores him! It's his fate to defeat all evildoers and free the world from the Dark Master and his minions!

Sure, he could strike the two down while they had their backs turned... but this would be a dishonorable act, the likes of which that minions of the Dark Master accomplished. He is the Dragon of Prophecy, he strikes down all foes with the fury of justice using the ancient, sacred ways!

He challenged them a few times but each time, he was ignored. Why? Why were they paying no attention to him despite the fact that he insulted their master, the Dark Master, and their fellow minions? But then, this infernal insect and that imposter were truly twisted spawns, pawns of the Dark Master that eludes all logic.

But then... he remembered Cynder. He remembered how the tainted dragon acted around him, how she spoke of Spyro. The Guardians told him that the imposter had broken the Dark Master's control over her... nonsense! Even if the control is broken, she has been tainted! Cynder has no right to live, controlled or not, for she is forever marked by her sins! Death and eternal damnation is the only fate fit for such abominations as her!

Still, as much of an insult to all dragons as Cynder was, he remembered the explanations Ignitus gave about Cynder and how Cynder seemed to think of Spyro all the time.

Hmmm... so it's probable that they might have a crush on each others. How disgusting! But this could be an advantage...

"I am surprised that you both claim to be stuck outside, considering your girlfriend, imposter, is inside of the Temple of Souls!"

The reply had the intended effect and then, both Spyro and Sparx turned to face Astrial.

"Nice try, Astrial but Cynder is at the Dragon Temple," said Spyro.

Sparx nodded, smiling... but then, his smile slowly vanished as he remembered something.

"Uh-oh..." Spyro turned to Sparx upon hearing this, his confidence instantly vanishing.

"Uh-oh? What is it, Sparx?" he asked, a horrible feeling rising and overwhelming his heart.

The dragonfly suddenly became embarrassed and worried all at once, scratching the back of his head as he hovered there.

"Well... I kinda saw Cynder while I was searching for you and she mentioned about having to go somewhere for some reason, didn't say for what reason and where she was going. Yeah, I was kinda suspicious but well, I didn't think that..." he stopped when he noticed the new color of Spyro's face. A very, very pale purple, almost pink. "Err... you're okay, buddy?"

This whole situation amused Astrial. It was so satisfying to see the minions of the Dark Master get all worried!... not that they're actually feeling worry. Everyone knows that the Dark Master's spawns can't feel things such as love and hope. All they can do is fake out such emotions in order to fool innocents and lure them into traps! Still, it was amusing to see them trying.

"Oh, what's wrong? Your fellow minion is in danger for some unknown, twisted reason? Nice try, imposter. Everyone knows that the Dark Master's minions cannot be worried about anything but their master's desires."

Astrial had attacked him personally for the last time. Spyro spun around and faced the other purple dragon, his heart burning with such anger that he felt as if flames were being expelled from his nose each time he breathed.

"I. Don't. CARE! Go and bother someone else or, I don't know, actually ACT like the Dragon of Prophecy rather than spewing hateful stuff all THE FREAKIN' TIME! I'm sick of it! Get lost!"

He then turned to Sparx.

"Sparx, let's go."

Sparx wanted to say something but Spyro didn't let him, already moving on. Astrial stood there, watching the two going toward the army before them...

* * *

"So, what do we do, oh mauve one?" whispered Sparx, hovering close to Spyro's head.

The two of them hid behind a conveniently placed rock near the enemy positions. If the enemy army had seemed impressive enough from afar, it was even more impressive from this close! He could see all of the Dark Ones in the distance, yelling and mumbling non-sense as they waited for who knows what.

Then, beyond a few hundred meters worth of over-stacked monkeys, the massive gates that led to the Temple of Souls, their destination.

"Well... charging forward and fighting this many Dark Ones is suicide..." said Spyro, trying to spot an opening in the enemies' ranks and failing.

Fortunately, Sparx just saw one! He pointed at the side of the mountain.

"Hey, look at that! Do I spy a special entrance for purple dragons?"

Spyro turned to see what Sparx was pointing at and then, saw it. It seems that something had chipped away at the mountain's sides and as such, if one looked carefully, one could see a serie of pillars of ascending heights leading to a semi-natural set of crude stairs in the mountain that led straight to the gates. Conveniently, it wasn't near as well-guarded as the direct path... but the problem was that it would be easy for the horde to block Spyro's path once they would see him and well, there's not much cover once he jumps out of his hiding place.

"Well, any ideas on how to get past the monkey people?" added Sparx. He, too, figured it was a problem.

...and well, back to square one. If only they had some kind of distraction!

BOOM!

Spyro yelped and dived to the ground, landing on his stomach while Sparx covered his ears, doing the same as debris rained about.

"Was that dynamite?" asked Sparx.

Of course they knew it was dynamite, Dark Ones had been hurling that stupid stuff at them for months! But well, why did they thrown some of it? They hadn't done anything that could have given away their position...

Then, a familiar roar and thousands of enraged yells followed by the sounds of impacts.

"Please tell me he didn't..." said Spyro, shaking his head in disbelief.

Sparx peeked out of their hiding place... and then, he sighed loudly, rolling his eyes.

"Did so."

Astrial was right there, in the middle of the Dark Ones ranks, roaring as he breathed gigantic funnels of flames at his foes, spinning and swiping each time a Dark One managed to get through his barrage of fire, which happened something like twice per second. Although Astrial was doing surprisingly well considering the stupidity of his attempt to break through, he was still being overwhelmed.

"That's strange. Usually, I would suggest that we help him but I feel more like taking advantage of this distraction to go through the alternate route you found," stated Spyro in a surprisingly neutral voice.

"Yeah, noooo idea why..." replied Sparx.

And with that said, Spyro lowered himself a bit and then, kicked into the ground brutally with his hind legs as he leaped forward, dashing at full speed, Sparx following closely.

Taking advantage of the confusion caused by Astrial's attack, Spyro jumped above a bunch of perplexed Dark Ones, sailing right over their heads and landing on the first pillar. Instantly, the faces of surprise were replaced with faces of rage and dynamite and energy spheres rained about as grunts and magicians alike thrown their deadly projectiles at the second purple dragon.

They did not know where that purple weirdo came from or who was their true target but frankly, they couldn't care less! They hated them both and they are going DOWN!

However, all of their projectiles struck thin air. Moving at an incredible speed, Spyro skillfully jumped from pillar to pillar, effortlessly dodging each attack while Sparx did the same, zigzagging through as if the projectiles didn't exist... all of this only serving to fuel the apes' anger.

The more they dodged, the angrier the Dark Ones got. The angrier the Dark Ones became, the more they yelled and threw stuff, attracting the attention of more Dark Ones.

Soon enough, dynamite and black magic rained from virtually every side and in their fits of rage, the Dark Ones jumped about, flailing their weapons like crazy as they attempted, without success, to stop the purple dragon and his partner.

Then finally, after one final serie of jumps, Spyro cleared the weird stairs that separated him from his objective and landed in front of the main gate, right behind the enemy ranks. Sparx followed a mere second later.

The Dark Ones in the back were yelling and growling, pointing their weapons to the skies, hopping about like demented psychotic hyperactive children.

They didn't know what was going on exactly but they knew that there were yells and screams about that 'darn purple pest', that bodies were flying about, that dynamite was flying about, that there was magic, arrows, swords, and blood and all of it was making them ANGRY! They wanted blood, NOW!

Then, as all of that was going on, they noticed that the dynamite and the whole anger was directed toward another point too... and then, they found themselves with all of the Dark Ones in front of them growling and screaming at them.

This confused them at first until one of them turned around and then, screeched loudly. All of them turned around to find that stupid purple dragon and its equally dumb dragonfly partner, just by the gate. How did that happen?!? How come they're HERE? Confusion soon gave away to pure RAGE! No one, NO ONE sneaks by the Dark Ones!

They lashed out like the animals they were, decided to turn those stupid things into swiss cheese with their pointy weapons!

Turning back a moment, Spyro and Sparx saw that the foes had finally realized that they were entering by the front gate and were now charging toward them.

"HURRY HURRY!" yelled Spyro as both of them turned back toward the interior and ran for it.

"What do you think I'm doing, smart guy?" yelled Sparx in response.

Then, Sparx noticed a certain lever located conveniently near a serie of chains linked to the massive door. It didn't take a very high IQ to guess what this thing was for. Smirking evilly, he "accidentally" charged into it on the way in...

CLANG!

CRRRRRRR!

SLAM!

And thanks to that, the gate closed right behind Spyro, locking the Dark Ones out the moment they were about to get in. Spyro spun around quickly, startled a bit by the loud sound... and was surprised to find the Dark Ones, screaming and shaking the door angrily, unable to get by it. Huh? What? How? Why? And at this moment, Spyro saw Sparx hovering by the lowered level, still smirking.

"So, who's the man?" said the dragonfly proudly.

Spyro couldn't help but smile. What would he do without Sparx? Really, he didn't know.

"Come on, let's go. Cynder is waiting for us," said the purple dragon, motioning to the dragonfly.

"What? Not even a thank you? I lock all of those monkeys outside saving you from who knows how much trouble and I don't even get a 'lil thanks?"

Spyro rolled his eyes. Who knows how much he owes that dragonfly. But although Sparx does have a point, there is unfortunately no time to thank him. Cynder is deeper inside, locked up by the Dark Master's very general. There is absolutely no time to lose.

As the two begun to dash through the strangely empty, eerie halls of the dark temple, a thought came to Spyro. This was the Temple of Souls, the very fortress where the Dark Master lies in wait.

The Prophecy stated that this will be the last battle... does this means that the Dark Master will be freed here?

He cannot hesitate, not now. He came too far to give in to fear now. Whenever or not the Dark Master will revive, he will rescue Cynder and he will finish what he started.

His fate awaits...

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	5. Truth

OFF: Getting near the end...

* * *

**Chapter 4: Truth**

Will alone does not make heroes... and Fate has its last word. Ideal is hard to achieve, yet so quick to shatter...

* * *

"I don't like this one bit." Spyro said more to himself than anything else.

Sparx couldn't help but agree. "Yeah. I mean, I know there was this huge blockade outside... but no guards inside at all? Either they just got even dumber or we're running straight to our doom."

Walking through the halls, the two couldn't help but notice how there was absolutely nothing to stop them. No soldiers, no monsters, no traps... nothing. Although it was better that way considering, it still wasn't very easy for their nerves. There was this sense of dread, this ominous hunch... and the silence didn't help at all.

This place... it wasn't anything like they had imagined. The both of them had always made theories about what the Dark Master's fortress would be but none of these came even a slightest bit close to what it truly was.

The Temple of Souls was a dark, damp, eerie place to say the least. The stench of humidity was so strong that even with them having grown in a swamp, it still got to them. Then, there were the rotten, decaying black walls covering in green glowing vegetation unlike anything they had ever seen. It seemed as if they were inside of ruins rather than a fortress... yet, this was the place. Both of them could feel it now, the aura of pure evil ahead...

Then, they passed through the gigantic door and found themselves in what seemed to be more or less a replica of the Dragon Temple's training room or, at least, a twisted, warped version of it. Rather than a statue in the middle, there was some kind of weird well with streams of creepy-looking thingies constantly flying from a hole in the ceiling into the well and the room seemed overall larger, the overall room shaped like an arena or a pit of sorts.

"So... I finally get to meet you in the flesh, purple dragon..." this voice...

Sitting comfortably on the throne on the opposite side of the room, located on the higher part of the room, the Dark One king smirked evilly as he stared at the so-called dragon of legend...

Just before them stood the single most monstrous Dark One Spyro had ever seen. Clad in purple armor, his right eye glowing in an eerie green light as he stared at the purple dragon and his partner, Gaul stood before his guests. The two young ones had seen plenty of disformed creatures born out of the Dark Master's power before... but out of all the beings they had run into, this was definitely the most twisted. To say that Gaul was horrific was an understatement...

"Hmmm... You are smaller than I expected." he simply stated.

And well, if there was one thing that Spyro didn't like, it was when people made fun of his size! Thus, Gaul's reply allowed Spyro to snap out of it and to rebecome serious.

"I know that you're holding Cynder here. Release her, now!" said Spyro, stepping forward and trying to sound as intimidating as possible.

"Yeah, you better listen ugly 'cuz else, we're gonna kick your booty big time!" added Sparx both for dramatic effect and to keep himself from fainting from seeing such a horrible face. Truly, the common Dark One was ugly to begin but this one, eek! It's the face that broke a thousand mirrors for sure!

Then, slowly, a cold, deep, cruel laugh. A very slow and evil-sounding one that sent chills through Spyro's spine. The way Gaul laughed was unlike any laugh he had heard from any Dark One before. There was no excitement in it, no apparent irrational rage. All there was in his laugh was pure, cold, raw evil.

And then, at this moment, hesitantly, Cynder walked out of the throne's shadow and into plain sight, head hanging low.

"Cynder!" at this moment, a mix of relief and intense fear filled the purple dragon. Cynder was alright!... but on another hand, she's next to that huge Dark One and that is BAD!

"Let her go this instant!" he added quickly, his voice shaking slightly.

"Completely clueless, I assume. Well, no matter." the monstrous Dark One got up and made some kind of gesture, as if greeting Spyro...

"Welcome to the Temple of Souls, purple dragon. I am Gaul, the king of all Dark Ones and supreme leader of the Dark Armies. I am the mastermind behind all of the Dark Armies' operations, the Dark Master's very right hand. It was written that this day would come, that we would meet tonight... for tonight is the night of the decisive battle. Tonight, the Dark Master returns... by my hand, with the blood of the Dark Master's chosen, Cynder!"

"Not if I can help it!" interrupted Spyro. He had expected that the Dark Master would reserve such a fate for Cynder but still, regardless, it got to him and he felt the fear rise. No, this is no time to be afraid! Cynder is counting on him!

Gaul stared at the purple dragon for a moment...

"Hmph. If only you had known..." he mumbled before turning to Cynder. "Now, Cynder. This will not take too long."

Then, Gaul jumped off the higher ledge and into the lower arena causing an earthquake as he landed. Spyro held his ground and stared back fearlessly, the Dark King's massive frame causing a miniature earthquake for each step he made toward his opponent. Cynder sat by the throne, staring as this unfolded...

Then, finally, once Gaul made him in front of Spyro, he stood there, grinning evilly, looking down at him intently. Gaul found it hard to believe that such a small creature had caused him so much trouble. Guess that it's true, appearances are truly unreliable...

"Now now, dragon. There is no need for us to fight. We both know that your miserable little skills are no match for my wrath... so I suggest you sit back and watch the show like the good little hatchling that you are. If you attempt to stop me, you will only get hurt."

Spyro and Sparx remained silent. Stepping back, now?... especially knowing that this is the final battle and that Cynder will be sacrificed or something if they don't intervene? Forget it!

The dragon and dragonfly looked at each others and then nodded. They both knew what was the right thing to do. Both of them turned to Gaul, smirking.

"Not impressed. I mean, asking us NOT to fight you? Heh! Figured out that's the reason why you hid behind Cynder and those monkey things for all this time! You're a loser!" taunted Sparx.

"Dark Master's right hand, heh? Heard that title before, defeated its holder before. I won't back down. I can't. So... I guess you'll have to hurt us!" added Spyro.

And then, a totally unexpected reaction. Rather than becoming angered or anything, Gaul smiled and stepped back. He turned his back to the purple dragon and stood there, seemingly doing nothing... or so it seemed.

Sparx rose an eyebrow. Why was this gorilla shaking more and more?

... and then, Gaul turned back to Spyro, unable to suppress his laughter anymore. He burst into loud, maniacal laughter.

"Hahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!"

... and then, he rebecame serious.

"What a pity. Truly, I thought you would know better of it. Well now..." Gaul brought his hands down and then, slowly, unsheathed a pair of giant swords, one in each hand. "I shall give you a reason to fear King Gaul, dragon."

SLAM!

"OW!"

BAM!

"SPY-"

BAM!

"EEK!"

SPLAT!

Spyro groaned in a mix of annoyance and pain as he slowly slid off the wall. He should have expected this! He should have been ready!... though, on another hand, he had no way of knowing that Gaul was so fast. Usually, foes that are this huge were slow... yet, Gaul had jumped right in front of him at an absolutely incredible speed.

Within a moment, he had felt the hilt of Gaul's left sword smashing into his stomach, sending him slamming straight into the wall. A mere second later, Gaul struck Sparx with the flat of his right sword's blade, sending him slamming into the wall as well.

"That... didn't feel good..." whined Sparx as he shook his head, shaking the dizziness off.

Well, Sparx's okay so he guess there's no need to worry. Still... why did Gaul target Sparx? Most of the time, all of the foes they met focused exclusively on him. Why aim for Sparx?

Oh well, this is not the time to ponder about this.

Spyro stepped forward and gripped the ground as he assumed his battle stance. Gaul fearlessly stared back, turned slightly to the side, not facing Spyro directly. A strange battle stance... but one that sure helped Gaul take advantage of his gigantic size and weight via momentum! Spyro noted this mentally. He will have to make sure not to attack Gaul from angles that would allow him to smash him again like this.

Then Spyro dashed at full speed, head lowered, decided to charge into that oversized monkey!

CLANG!

Predictably, Gaul blocked it. The impact caused Spyro to recoil but that was his plan all along. He opened his mouth and...

SMASH!

BAM!

"Wha... WHA? How did he move so fast?" Sparx had definitely not expected this attack to fail. He had seen Spyro use this strategy before and it was the first time he saw it fail!

Spyro, him, begun to feel the pain. This time, Gaul did not bother smacking him with any weapon... but maybe it would have been better if he had as Gaul proceeded to deliver the mother of all left body blows to Spyro, sending him slamming into the wall almost twice as hard as last time. His back, stomach, and wings already ached a whole lot... and considering the fight had only begun, this was NOT a good thing!

Still, Spyro quickly got back on his feet and despite the pain, stood in defiance before his foe.

Gaul looked carefully at the purple dragon and then, slammed both swords into the ground violently, causing an earthquake! Spyro was taken by surprised once again and found himself paralyzed due to the shockwave.

Gaul jumped just next to Spyro and slammed the hilt of his left sword into Spyro's back, just between the wings!

SLAM!

"OOW!" that was all Spyro could think of saying as he found himself lying on his stomach, slammed into the ground from the strength of the impact, unable to move.

Spyro slammed his paws into the ground, attempting to get back up as soon as possible... only to have Gaul deliver his incredibly powerful left body blow to Spyro's stomach, sending him slamming into a column nearby.

BAAAM!

Spyro's eyes widened as he slammed into the column with enough strength to make the room shake a bit. He tried to yelp in pain but found himself unable to, gulping and almost choking on some kind of liquid. When Spyro opened his mouth, trying to breathe, he instead found himself unable to keep in the blood that had flooded his mouth in.

Sparx's eyes widened as well when he saw his adoptive brother vomit a big glob of crimson. That was NEVER a good sign. He flew to Spyro's side as he slid off the column, seemingly dazed.

"SPYRO! Answer me! You're okay buddy?" he asked, worried to no end.

The dragon frowned, his paws reaching for his aching chest. In fact, his whole body ached. That body blow had surely caused something to cave in and those repeated impacts against the walls and now that column must have broken his back and his wings. The purple dragon didn't know how much he had been injured but considering how insanely strong Gaul is, he couldn't afford to take too many more hits like that.

"Hmph. Is that all you got?" Gaul stood before the two, staring blankly at the two as if sorely disappointed. "Is that all that the Dragon of Prophecy can do? Is that the so-called power that my master fears? How utterly laughable. You are weak!"

Spyro looked to the side and saw her... Cynder, looking at him from the higher ledge. He could see the worry in her eyes, her fear. He... he isn't going to give up. He's not going to let this end this way!

As Spyro got up, Sparx recognized the glow in the purple dragon's eyes as he was about to unleash the full power of his fury. Well, about time the mauve one got his act together! Sparx hid behind a column and hovered there waiting for the show of pyrotechnics...

Gaul rose an eyebrow wondering what was happening when Spyro begun to relax and slowly begun to hover, as if carried by a weird power. His eyes widened when he begun to see the flames gathering and he begun to step back, knowing that he wouldn't be able to block THAT.

SWOOOOOOSH!

CLANG!

BOOM!

The sound of Gaul being slammed into the wall by Spyro's Fury Attack was deafening, the impact violent enough to make the entire arena shake.

When Spyro landed, he opened his eyes slowly and smiled, seeing Gaul getting back up, a few traces of black on his armor. Looks like they're even now!

The monstrous Dark One stood there, breathing heavily and then, he begun to laugh. He just stood there, laughing.

Sparx got out of his hiding place and hovered near his friend. "Okay... I think you might have sent him slamming into the wall a bit too hard..."

Spyro simply stood there, weirded out by this turn of event. "What are you laughing for?"

The Dark One stopped and then, stepped forward, wiping the dust off himself as he did so.

"I won."

Spyro stood there, wondering what he meant. Gaul think he won? Why was he...

"SPYRO! LOOK OUT!"

Spyro turned just in time to see the column into which he had been slammed collapsing. That last earthquake must have been more than this column could handle. And well, conveniently, it was falling straight toward him!

Unfortunately, although Sparx managed to get out of the way in time, the purple dragon could only stand there, eyes widened, realizing that he had no way of escaping what was going to happen now. He tried in vain to get out of the way, kicking into the floor to send himself out of the way, knowing that he wouldn't be fast enough.

BOOOOOOM!

"OOOoooOOOW!" cried loudly Spyro, tears streaming down his cheeks as the massive stone column crashed on his back, effectively crushing his body and trapping him.

The pain... was overwhelming. He felt his entire body shaking as the powerful impact probably caused most of his body to effectively cave in. Despite the incredible pain and the tears streaming down his cheeks and blinding his vision, he was decided to struggle still. He attempted to move but then, the truth came to him and horrified him. The column didn't move and he didn't felt any of his limbs. He was paralyzed, totally stuck...

"Spy... Spyro..." the dragonfly just hovered there, jaw hanging in disbelief.

Slowly, Gaul begun to approach and at this moment, terror filled Sparx's heart. Spyro was now defenseless. If Gaul was to try to strike him now...

"Hang in there buddy! HANG IN THERE!" yelled the dragonfly as he pushed against the collapsed column with all of his strength in a vain effort to move it off his partner.

Gaul couldn't help but grin. The look of pure sheer terror on the dragonfly's face was pure gold and he enjoyed every moment of it. Every single step he took, the despair in the stupid reptile's friend's heart grew, causing him to push against the column harder. A worthless gesture ; a creature this weak cannot move such a heavy object. The dragon didn't even seem like he was noticing anything, stuck where he was, a red puddle slowly forming under him from the lethal injuries he received.

Sheer panic possessed Sparx as Gaul was now just in front of the purple dragon, a devilish grin on his face as he stared down at his fallen foe.

"No... NO! Back off you... YOU FREAKY THING!" Sparx flew to Gaul's face and repeatedly flew back and forth, trying to shoo him off by smacking him in the face repeatedly. However, all those attacks were nothing but a mere breeze to the oversized king.

Without even saying a word, Gaul swiped at the air and smacked Sparx with the flat side of his right sword, sending him slamming into another column.

SPLAT!

Sparx's eyes widened as he suddenly felt very dizzy. Being slammed head-first into that column REALLY didn't feel good. Not saying a word, Sparx rolled his eyes and fainted. Spyro was now alone...

"You have lost, purple dragon." said the king, slowly looking down at the dragon.

Victory was so sweet. At long last, the stupid being that had foiled so many plans, destroyed so many machines, killed so many soldiers... finally, he was before him, fallen. The despair on the reptile's face, his look as he had no choice but to accept to die, it was so... satisfying. Truly, why he didn't go out there and took care of the purple dragon himself was a total mystery to him. Rather than wasting his time with minions, he should have done this months, no, years ago!

Regardless, the purple dragon is now out of the way.

The dragon stared back as he stared back. Hard to believe that the purple dragon was a mere hatchling, harder still that he was still alive and conscious after receiving such injuries. He truly is a powerful creature... too bad for him that he was no match for the almighty King Gaul!

Spyro stopped trying to struggle as he realized that Gaul was right. He had been defeated, easily at that, by Gaul. It was over...

"Please..." this weak voice... could it be? Not only is he winning but the purple dragon is going to beg him for mercy? Tonight is surely the best night of his life, that's for sure! The Dark Master is returning, Cynder's back, and now this? It sure feels good to be the king of all Dark Ones right now!

"Please... spare my friends. I'm the one you wants. Please... let them go."

Well, that is rich. Even when forced into such a situation, the purple dragon to blurt out that idealistic non-sense. Although it was less satisfying than seeing the dragon break down into a fit of tears and beg for mercy, it was still more than good enough. Gaul couldn't help but smile in anticipation of the face the reptile will do when he will refuse his request...

"Fact is, I cannot grant you this request. Cynder's blood is required for the ritual that will bring back the Dark Master into this world." Saying the words felt sooo good and that look of sheer horror on the enemy's face felt even better to watch. Truly, what a good night this is!

"Then... use mine."

Huh? What? What was that stupid dragon saying?

"Use my blood... please spare Cynder's life..." finished the dragon.

Gaul stared at the dragon and then, slowly, an urge rose within him and within seconds, overwhelmed his mind, causing him to burst into maniacal laughter.

"No. I cannot do that." And then, he rose his right sword, preparing to deal the finishing blow...

Cynder couldn't take it anymore. She loved the Dark Master, she wished for him to return, she was loyal to him... but... but she couldn't bear to see this. She couldn't bear it anymore. She could stay loyal to the Dark Master, she could hide the truth from Spyro... but she couldn't let Spyro get himself killed. She just couldn't.

"STOP! PLEASE!" Gaul froze, turning to Cynder as she jumped off the ledge and landed next to him.

"What is it?" he asked, wondering why Cynder was crying. Didn't she wait for this moment for such a long time, too? Didn't she lead, alongside him, the hunt for the purple dragon? Why was she unhappy NOW, at their moment of triumph?

"The purple dragon is no threat to the Dark Master, you have proven it once and for all. Please let him go. He will go quietly and never bother the Dark Armies ever again."

... what is the meaning of this?

He stared at the purple dragon and then back at the dragoness... then back to the dragon... and then back to the dragoness...

... hmmm...

And then, he got it.

This is why she didn't kill him in his sleep nor came back before. This was why she maintained the disguise for so long... and that is why he forgave her so easily, why he accepted her and trusted her so quickly.

They cared for each others, deeply. He didn't know how deep it went and under what form but he now was sure of it. She cared for him just as he cared for her.

... and then, it became so ironic to him.

This is why he was never able to predict the purple dragon. He wasn't a great warrior guided by the Ancestors, he had never been so. He was only a common dragon with slightly greater powers protecting those he loved.

How... pathetic.

"Fine... but first, tell him the truth."

The dragoness's eyes widened. "What?"

Gaul turned to face the black dragoness. "Tell the purple dragon the truth about yourself."

Cynder suddenly felt as if a massive ball had formed in her throat causing her to become totally mute. Not only that but she felt her limbs beginning to tremble, out of control.

"What... what is he talking about, Cynder?" the female dragon's face fell even further. She... she couldn't tell him. She just couldn't... she...

"Cynder... telling me what?" Spyro... she couldn't do this to him... she just couldn't...

She turned to Gaul, a pleading expression on her face. He slowly nodded, not the single hint of mercy nor compassion on it.

She lowered her head and closed her eyes...

"Will you promise... to let him go?"

"Of course. You are a dear friend, this is the least I can do for a fellow servant of the Dark Master." replied the king of the Dark Ones.

Her limbs continued to shake as she stared at Spyro. He had trusted her so completely, going as far as to come into this forsaken place and fight King Gaul himself for her. And now she... she...

... she felt so awful. He had done so much for him and he cared so much for her... and she cares for him so deeply. He had been the friend he never had, the being who shown him that there is good in this world. She... she... she even...

... and now, she is going to break his heart. He had trusted her and yet, she had never turned away from the Dark Master.

It was so painful... she loved the Dark Master so much. In the endless darkness, among the hatred of the Dark Ones, he had been her guiding light, her father, the sole being to respect her and love her as Cynder, not as the Dark Queen who will open the portal to the Dark Realm.

... and yet, Spyro...

But... there was no choice. Painful as it was, the time has come to reveal her true colors...

"Spyro... I... please listen to me..." she said, slowly getting closer to the purple dragon, stroking his cheek with her paws.

"Cynder... why are you crying? Please... please don't cry." Cynder shook her head and then made a gesture to show to him that she wanted him to be silent.

She then slowly stepped back and gathered all of her courage...

"Spyro. The Guardians... they don't know everything about me. I hid the truth about what happened to me... about my own time among the Dark Ones."

Spyro was about to say something but the dragoness made another gesture and he remained silent.

"Spyro... I... was never controlled by the Dark Master. I... played the "controlled" card because that I was afraid that the Guardians would kill me if they found out. I... I couldn't tell them. I just couldn't tell them... that I loved the Dark Master. That he was my adoptive father, that he was dear to my heart just as your dragonfly parents were dear to your heart."

Seeing no response, Cynder continued on.

"In the darkness, among the Dark Ones who would seen me only as an ugly dragon, one of their enemies, the Dark Master helped me. Spyro, he... he protected me, he taught me, he respected me. Every time I was scared, every time the Dark Ones would try to bully me... he was there for me. I could always rely on his power. I... I wish more than anything else to see him in the flesh... for him to step out of the portal and to hug me, his adoptive daughter... for us to be a family and to spread his power, our way of life across the Realms..."

"You lie. You just say that to please Gaul. Fight him! Don't let him manipulate him!" Spyro... it was as she thought. He would not believe her. She turned to Gaul...

"Believe what you want, purple dragon. Fact is, Cynder is the Dark Master's daughter, the Dark Queen, her most treasured creature! This was why he blessed her with his power, accelerating her growth into that of an adult. He gave her a form worthy of the respect he had for her... for his dear daughter." said the king, slowly walking until he was just next to the dragoness, in front of the dragon.

"And now, today, at long last, the Dark King, Dark Queen, and Dark Master will be reunited together! I, Cynder, and the glorious Dark Master will lead the world to a new age! We, the Dark Ones, shall rule the world in a way that the dragons and their so-called Ancestors never could!"

And at this moment, Spyro saw it, he finally noticed it.

Cynder's eyes glowed in the exact same green color as Gaul's right eye. The exact same green, the exact same glow, the exact same power dormant within. The power... it had never left Cynder's body. She had simply hid back in the form of a hatchling but deep down, she never changed. She was still the Dark Master's monster... and it now became obvious that she will always be his monster.

"No... she... couldn't have been..." Spyro mumbled, denial in his shaky voice.

Gaul nodded, smirking. "She was lying the whole time. She is the Dark Master's servant, now and forever."

At this moment, Spyro forgot all about the column, all about his broken bones, all about the column, all about Gaul, all about the Dark Master, all about Sparx even.

The feeling he was experiencing... this pain... it was just too overwhelming to describe. It was as if time had stopped for him.

"No... no... please no... Tell me you... you..." he cried.

Cynder frowned even more, looking down. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

"I... I trusted you! I... I helped you! I believed you would be freed! Why? Why do you kept on following him?... even after all he made you do? WHY?" asked the purple dragon, unable to keep the feeling in.

He... he had trusted her, entrusted her with his feelings about so many things, remained at her side, protected her... and now, he learns that she was fooling him all this time. She had never believed him, she had never been good. She had been on the Dark Master's side all this time...

"You have been manipulating me the whole time... You..."

Cynder opened her eyes. "No! You don't understand! I... you truly are my friend! I like you! I..."

She looked down, frowning as Spyro's face begun to distort as sadness continued to tear his heart apart.

Gaul smirked. He could see it through the opening in the sky. The time has come...

"Enough. I will let him be. But first... we have a ritual to finish." said the Dark One, approaching the center of the room.

At this moment, the moons finally came together, forming an eclipse and from the hole in the ceiling, a massive beam of purple light came. The light of the moons... the power that will open the gate.

"Look, Cynder. It is time..." said Gaul, as if in awe.

When Sparx opened his eyes, he saw Spyro stuck under his column, bleeding badly but thankfully, still alive. For a moment, he grinned, amused by his brother's crybaby-like attitude, sobbing quietly like this.

... but then, he remembered two things. First, that was a nasty thing to do. There's a difference between cracks and making fun of Spyro's suffering. Second, Spyro did not cry because of pain. After all, that wasn't the first near-death experience for Spyro. Sure, tears flowed out of his eyes when he was really badly injured... but sobbing like that? Never.

Then, he saw Cynder, standing before Gaul... and he understood.

"CYNDER! Get outta here!"

Sure, he had never liked that black dragoness much... but he knew that Gaul spoke of sacrifice, blood, and other bad stuff! Spyro will flip if anything happens to Cynder!

But then, that look she gave him was just the strangest he ever saw considering the situation. It was a calm, sad, resigned one. How can Cynder be calm in such a situation?!?

"No, Sparx. This is my destiny." she told him.

Gaul pointed his right sword at Cynder...

"Don't just STAND THERE, idiot! Do something!" why did Spyro just lied there? That wasn't his style! Spyro is the type that you can't keep down no matter how beat up! What's the logic here? Why is he giving up?

Gaul then rose his sword...

"Oh dear... I can't watch this!" the dragonfly covered his eyes and hovered near the floor, disgust rising. Disgust because that he didn't doubt it wasn't going to be pretty. Disgust because he couldn't believe that Gaul actually beaten Spyro that easily. Disgust because he knew things were not going to end well and that he hated bad endings.

SLASH!

The blade sliced smoothly across the symbol on Cynder's forehead, splattering a little bit of red on the floor as it happened. She recoiled a bit from the pain, gritting her teeth and then, looked down.

The red begun to flow, her vision changing, the little drops falling into the cracks of the floor.

Slowly, she brought her tail toward her left shoulder and using the blade at the tip, made a wide cut across the symbol on it. Again, she flinched but she paid very little attention to it beyond flinching a bit...

Spyro watched as Cynder walked around the Well of Souls, her pace deliberate as she walked at the right speed for her blood to fill the cracks, her blood causing a strange reaction on the floor, causing it lit up... as if her own blood was the key to something embedded into the floor. As this happened, Gaul sheathed his sword back and took a strange staff out of his backpack before beginning to recite an incantation in a language long forgotten.

And as he watched this, he saw the sadness in Cynder's eyes... but no remorse. He could even spy a hint of excitement and anticipation beyond the sadness.

He didn't even consider for a second if it was real or not. Cynder had manipulated him. He... he had helped her, he had trusted her... and now this. All this time along, she had faked being his friend and this filled him with... with...

Spyro's eyes narrowed and his expression slowly morphed into a different one, the tears no longer streaming. Gradually, all physical pain and traces of weariness begun to disappear... but the pain of his soul only grew, replaced by a new feeling, one which dried off his tears.

Rage...

She had betrayed him. All this time along, she had been a traitor. He... he had wanted to believe she was good but now, he knew she had never been... and this filled him with hatred. He had wasted his time, he had been naive and now, because of this, he now suffered.

And soon, self-pity begun to vanish as well.

This was Gaul's doing... and Cynder's. All this time along, she had planned to bring the Dark Master back. She had only remained at his side for reasons unknown, reasons he no longer cared about. This was not just Gaul's fault... this was Cynder's fault. Cynder was responsible just as Gaul was.

"Spyro?" Sparx was officially creeped out. What was the deal with Spyro's expression? The way he looked at the two... sure, he saw Spyro angry before but never, NEVER did he see him stare at someone like that! It was just... scary beyond belief. He couldn't believe that Spyro was able to stare at someone in such a way.

Gaul interrupted his incantation as the sound of a Fury Attack being charged echoed through the air. He turned to Spyro, grinning evilly. Finally, his plan's final phase was now coming to fruition... and the purple dragon could do nothing but accelerate the inevitable.

BOOOOOOOM!

The column was blasted into tiny bits, pieces of shattered rock flying about as Spyro broke out from under the column. Cynder stopped and turned to Spyro. How... how did he do that? She thought that Spyro needed to charge up with fury energy using purple gems before unleashing such an attack after using it! How did he unleash two of them in a row?

"So... still wishing to fight? Still, you are too late. Cynder's blood is now spilled and the incantation is completed. You have failed, dragon. The time has come for the Dark Ones to rise! The time of the dragons has come to an end!" announced triumphantly Gaul as he slammed his staff into the ground.

Despite how battered Spyro was, his entire body covered in injuries, he wouldn't let this happened. He dived right toward Gaul and...

"NO! DON'T!" yelled Cynder in panic but it was too late. Spyro, in his rage, dashed right across the room... and went through the ray of light.

FWOOOOSH!

At this moment, the ray of light turned bright pink as the portal to the Dark Realm opened just as Spyro passed over it.

Sparx's eyes widened as he saw his adoptive brother, struck in mid-air by something. Spyro just floated there, screaming at the top of his lungs, immense pain raking through all of his body and soul as a gigantic stream of green energy flowing into him.

... and at this moment, Spyro, just like Cynder, realized, too late, the true nature of Gaul's plan.

His mind weakened by his hatred and pain, Spyro stood absolutely no chance against the overwhelming power that raked through him...

"S-S-S-Spyro..." the Dark Master hissed... from inside Spyro's own mind.

And then, Spyro rolled his eyes as the green energy washed all over his mind like a tidal wave. Unable to fight back, the purple dragon gave in. He stopped struggling. He submitted to his will. He abandoned his soul completely to the Dark Master, becoming one with him.

... and before Gaul's amazed eyes, Spyro transformed, his scales turned dark purple, his wings, horns, and spikes turning blue-ish white, and his eyes turning bright white. An evil aura was now emitted from Spyro's body and everyone in the room felt the presence of the long gone evil that had finally returned to the world...

SLASH!

But then, Gaul's eyes widened as he recoiled back, Spyro's face distorted with hatred as he slashed at the Dark One king's chest.

"Wha-wha... Why?" mumbled the ape-like creature, confused.

Spyro remained silent, staring at Gaul in such a way that even though he lacked pupils at this moment, even a blind creature would clearly see the hatred oozing from the dark purple dragon's eyes.

"Spyro... You okay buddy?" Sparx asked tentatively, slowly hovering near his friend only to have the reptile turn to him in an instant, his face just as terrible as when he was staring at Gaul.

"Out of my way, insect!"

SLAM!

SPLAT!

Sparx was once again sent flying into a nearby column and this time, with enough strength to make the stone pillar collapse. Sparx remained among the dust and chunks of rock, silent, unable to think of anything to say and equally unable to believe this was happening.

Cynder saw Spyro... and her heart was broken.

This... was not what she had wanted. This was not what she been wishing for, what she had prepare for during all those years. This was not how the Dark Master was meant to return. This was nothing but a cruel joke.

She could feel it... the two spirits within, both raked by pain. The Dark Master desesperatly clinging to Spyro as Spyro's own spirit sobbed and cried within, unable to keep the power from harming him.

This is not how it was meant to unfold. For the sake of both Spyro and the Dark Master, this must come to an end.

"Spyro..." and then, among the infinite darkness, two lost souls heard a female's voice...

"Please, do not let it control you. That's not like you..." and then, both of them knew it was true.

"I... I can't... I can't control it..." they both said, Spyro unable to control the Dark Master's power, the Dark Master unable to bear Spyro's pain.

But then, pure sheer hatred rose once more. Spyro hated this female and the Dark Master saw a disobedient servant. Servant? Who cares! He hate all dragons! Stupid dragons! He'll make them disappear, all of them!

Gaul saw Cynder preparing to jump and frowned. NO! She mustn't! If she do this, the ritual will fail and...

The Dark One king roared as he lashed forward, intend on grabbing into Cynder before she could jump... but he was too late.

In an instant, Cynder shoulder-tackled Spyro, knocking him out of the light and splattering a bit of her blood on his chest.

... and as this was done, the light twisted, following the blood as if trying to keep it aligned with the portal but Spyro had already been knocked off into an angle where the light of the moons could not reach.

"NOOOO! FOOL!" screamed Gaul in denial as it happened.

BROOOOOM!

Uh-oh! That doesn't sound good! Sparx flew out of the column's debris to see the entire temple shaking and the floor beginning to crumble as the beam of light supposed to connect Spyro to the portal and the moons went crazy, the connection now broken.

"Spyro... I believe in you..." she told Spyro as she stood on top of him, looking down into his eyes. He saw her cry... and he wondered... why did she do this?

He was so dizzy... he didn't knew who he was anymore. The Dark Master's spirit overwhelmed him and yet... he was still here. Who was he now? Where is he?

BOOOM!  
BAM!  
CRRRACK!

And then, there was an explosion, a gigantic beam of purple light...

... and then, there was silence.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	6. Spirit

OFF: Took a while but the next chapter is finally done! 

Nearing the end...

* * *

**Chapter 5: Spirit**

The true face of Fate lies in blood and Order, not words alone. A Prophecy without base is void.

* * *

A sinking feeling... when Cynder opened her eyes, she found herself falling through an empty void.

Nothing as far as the eye can see, not even the slightest hint of anything... yet, she feels as if she was in some sort of liquid. Yet, she could breathe and her eyes did not sting. It was such a strange feeling...

This feeling, it was so familiar... she had been here before, she could tell it wherever that "here" was.

And then, a light begun to rise from below and soon, it covered the endless horizon. But then, a doubt. Was this truly light?... no, this wasn't light... or rather, not just light. She could see the yellow and orange in the light. This was not mere light... it was fire.

And soon enough, the screams of the damned begun to echo as the twisted skies of the Dark Realm were illuminated, the dawn of a new day arriving, the giant purple sun rising in the skies.

It was a horrific sight, the clouds seemingly made of the twisted bones, spines, and skulls of creatures all mixed together to form mock-ups of clouds. Everywhere around her, countless screaming figures, damned souls, falling just as she was. Many clung to rocks, thinking they were floating... but in truth, it was an illusion as everything in this Realm was falling toward the fire, toward the eternal suffering, just as she now was. She could see it now, the twisted, endlessly stretching maw of the abyss below, as if perpetually gulping the unfortunate beings who fell within...

Then, she saw Sparx, falling as she was, flapping his wings in vain, his expression showing pure, raw terror. Considering what was happening, it wasn't a surprise.

But then, she saw something else. Atop a giant falling platform of rock, Gaul stood, fearlessly gazing down, waiting for the inevitable...

Spreading her wings, the female sent herself toward the rock and then, when she was close enough, she slammed her claws into the edge of the rock and climbed, bringing herself on top of it. Surprisingly, even as she climbed on top of it, she didn't feel gravity lifting her off it. Everything was falling at an equal speed here, everything... It was such a strange feeling. You knew you were falling and you had the feeling you were falling and yet, you could move through the air as if there was a floor, absolutely no friction from the air affecting you... But then, this was the Dark Realm, a Realm that eluded the logic and laws of the physical planes.

Sparx, seeing this, finally snapped out of it and went to join Cynder but before he could say anything, the female turned to him and gestured to him.

"Stay back... this is between me and him. Go find Spyro... help him." she told the dragonfly.

Timidly, the dragonfly nodded and then, changed direction, beginning to search among the maze of falling souls.

Now, Cynder was alone. Just her and the king of the Dark Ones...

"Hmm... so you are finally awake." said Gaul, strangely calm, not turning to face her.

The dragoness slowly nodded as she walked toward the Dark One king, stopping in the middle of the platform and sitting down on it.

"So... you never intended to bring back the Dark Master to begin with..." stated Cynder, every bit as calm as the monstrous ape-like creature was.

"You know very well what is the true nature of the Dark Master. It doesn't truly matter which spirit is used as long as the power returns. If you hadn't interfered, the purple dragon's and the Dark Master's spirits would have annihilated each others leaving a mindless body behind..." explained Gaul.

"... one you would have been able to manipulate and control like a puppet. It wouldn't have been the Dark Master ruling the world, creating the utopia of Darkness... it would have been you ruling the world, plunging the Realms into chaos and despair!" finished Cynder, now realizing what Gaul's true plan had been all along.

Amused, Gaul turned and faced Cynder, an evil grin on his deformed, ugly face. The glow of the infernal fire below reflected off his face, now making the full extend of Gaul's insanity and evil all too obvious. Gaul was not simply maniacal. He was pure, raw evil. He was the very incarnation of the Dark Master's most vile work, the embodiment of the mistakes the Dark Master made. In a way, he was more evil than even the Dark Master himself.

"Why being so bitter, Cynder? Wasn't I the one who raised you, allowed you to come in contact with the Dark Master, gave you all the underlings you needed? Besides, what would have been the difference anyway? The Dark Master is no better than I. In both cases, Darkness would have ruled the world."

Cynder stepped back, a mix of terror and sadness coming back to her as the memories came flowing back. She remembered Gaul... his evil gaze, how he allowed his underlings to beat her up supposedly to make her stronger, how he had chained her and tortured her, day after day. He had never shown her any kindness, never... and she remembered how he had used his staff to charge her with magic, plunging her into the Well of Souls.

Even though Gaul was the one who truly raised her, she had never forgiven him. Even back in the day, she had never understood why Gaul was so... so needlessly cruel even among his own underlings. But now, she understood. Gaul was not an underling of the Dark Master. He was a tyrant, a monster that claimed to serve evil but in truth served no one but himself. She had been nothing but a tool to him, a simple mean to an end, a way for him to gain access to the Dark Master's power.

Even Spyro himself was a victim of Gaul's maniacal plans.

She slowly approached the edges of the platform and looked down. Bound in chains, plunged into the light of the Well of Souls, her soul was exposed to the power of the hellish abyss in the past... and now, she was going to become one with the tortured souls. She was going to fall into the fires of the Dark Realm and join the core of damned souls, burning into the flames of hatred for all eternity.

She always knew it would happen. It was the fate of those who serve the Dark Master... and now, nothing mattered anymore. It was over.

... but then, as she looked at Gaul, her fear begun to change.

She had never hated Spyro, even back when she only saw him as an enemy. Yet, she knew of intense, seething hatred. Now she realized what was the source of this anger.

She despised Gaul. She hated him more than anything else in the Universe and would never hate someone or something more than she hated Gaul.

If she was to burn in the Dark Realm for her sins... then so be it. But before that happens... she will face her fears. She will stop running away. She will stand up and do what she should have done many years ago.

She slowly stood up and stared fearlessly into Gaul's eyes, her face no longer showing any traces of fear.

"It is inevitable now, Gaul. Both of us shall now be punished for our sins..." she begun.

The Dark One nodded slowly, looking into the abyss anew. "Yes. All because of your foolish gesture. There is nothing else to do than watch the final fall..."

"I have a score to settle, Gaul. Although I shall be engulfed by the flames of the damned, you will not live to see it. It shall not be by the flames of hatred that you shall be burnt... but by my flame!"

Gaul turned back to face Cynder, his face clearly showing surprise and then, after a moment, his face distorted into an ugly, unfelt smile.

"Such gratitude. I am your father, Cynder. May you like it or not, I was the one who adopted you."

Cynder shook her head vigorously, her rage beginning to show, a soft growl escaping her throat.

"No! You are not my father! A father protects its child, a father cares for its child, a father is by the side of its child, a father loves its child! You... you brought me nothing but fear and suffering! The Dark Master was my father, not you!"

The gigantic monkey being crossed his arms. All of this amused him to no end.

"Even if it's true, what good will it brings you to destroy me? In case you failed to notice, we are both falling toward our respective damnations. Even if you kill me, you will achieve nothing."

"Maybe it won't prevent my own damnation... but I will achieve something. I shall overcome my past! I shall overcome YOU!" spat Cynder, her body shaking as she kept herself from lashing out and tearing that monster in pieces once and for all!

Gaul remained silent and slowly turned back to look down into the abyss, as if in thought...

... and then, after a moment, his smile turned into a maniacal smirk as he turned back to Cynder.

"One last battle, to settle the past while falling toward certain doom... such a tragic, epic finale... You always had a talent for such drama, Cynder. Still, you are a fool. Even the purple dragon himself was no match for me and you couldn't defeat him even when you had the Dark Master's power flowing in your veins. You do not stand a chance. Why do you even bother?"

The female simply glared back...

"I won't back down."

Gaul didn't seem impressed. He simply stood there, stretched himself slowly, and then unsheathed his swords.

"Fine then, Cynder. While we wait for us to reach the abyss and meet our ends... I shall be your opponent."

And at this moment, Gaul lashed out with all of his strength, leaping high into the air before coming down, both swords pointing downward, decided to strike Cynder down in one hit. Seeing this, Cynder folded her wings to the side as she rolled out of the way...

BAM!

Gaul only struck air but that didn't matter as he pulled the blades out of the rock and then leaped again.

The king of the Dark Ones faked out making a long jump but made a short one, trying to fool Cynder into thinking that running toward him would be the best evasion technique.

BAM!

Once again, his swords struck only air and he turned to see Cynder, glaring openly at him on his side.

The Dark One's face distorted into rage as he lifted his body off the platform and made a mighty, giant leap into the air before slamming down into the platform with all of his strength, at an incredible speed.

BAAAAM!

But again, Cynder was not hit. She stood just in front of him, still glaring.

Frustration rose within the monkey. How could Cynder dodge this attack so easily? No matter! He shall just slice her with plain, regular slashes then!

The monkey-like creature pulled on his swords but this time, his pulls were met with a resistance. He rose an eyebrow and pulled harder... only to find out that he was stuck.

"Wha... what? How?" he whined, more to himself than anything else.

"I survived among your troops and was trained by you. I know all of your tricks, Gaul." said the black dragoness in a surprisingly neutral tone.

Gaul responded by growling angrily before pulling into his blades one last time, pulling them out of the ground. He took on a fighting stance, pointing his swords at his opponent...

"Hmph! So, this fight shall be a stalemate... how disappointing! You know that you cannot defeat me, even if you can run from me!"

The king raised his blades and then, brought them down, slamming them into the ground with great strength and speed.

BAM!

crunch!

Gaul's eyes widened as Cynder effortlessly dodged in a surprisingly graceful way, almost like a dance of sorts, before gripping into his left arm and biting into his wrist with all of her strength, right at the place where the armor was thinner.

Instantly, Gaul roared in pain and flung his arm to the side. Cynder didn't resist the movement and held into his wrist with all of her strength as it happened...

RRRRIP!  
SCRLUNCH!

Gaul realized too late that it had been a mistake to react in such an impulsive manner. He did succeed into sending Cynder flying off of him with that motion... but as Cynder was sent flying, a sickening sound echoed and blood flew with Cynder.

The female spun in mid-air and landed right on her paws. Then, as Gaul glared at her, Cynder's expression turned into a naughty, devious smile and she slowly gulped down the chunk of flesh, licking her lips of the blood. Normally, Dark One flesh and blood tasted horrible... but just the idea of inflicting pain upon Gaul and taunting him in the meanwhile made it all worthwhile.

Seeing his glare, Cynder's smile widened and then, she winked at him.

This greatly, GREATLY infuriated the Dark One king, his face turning a funny color. How DARE Cynder does this?

... but then, he remembered that Cynder had always been like this. Even in the most intense of battles, there was always something infuriating about Cynder as she made fools of her opponents. She always seemed to play with her victims, always seemed to take it more or less seriously... yet, he reminded himself that this was all a part of Cynder's style. The female dragoness was a master at exploiting her opponent's weaknesses.

Once calmed down, the ape-like monster figured out that it was time to forget about the swords and fight for real. With part of his left hand gone, his grip on his left sword was weakening and he knew that as deadly he was with two swords, as inexperienced he was with only one.

So, rather than let the smile and the wink get to him, Gaul smiled back and then, thrown his swords away, off the platform.

The king of Dark Ones brought his hands to his shoulders and slowly, undone the straps of his armor.

cling... cling...

... and then, he gripped into it with his right hand and thrown it away as well, leaving only his pants and the Soul Gauntlet, attached to his right hand, on, revealing his horrific mutated body in all of its glory. One could see the strange warts, like eyes, all over his flesh, large patches of fur replaced by ugly green scales. As a side-effect from absorbing so much power from Spirit Gems he stole from dragons, Gaul had, ironically, morphed half-way into a dragon himself...

The two glared for a moment and then, Gaul lashed out like a wild beast.

Cynder once again gracefully dodged and Gaul's hand stab slammed into rock. The Dark One king was not going to let it end there however! Oh no! He shall show that insolent female what REAL speed is!

Thus, almost instantly after this, Gaul spun around as he swung his arms upward, trying to catch Cynder in the middle of her evasion leap. The dragoness didn't show any signs of fear nor surprise as she flapped her wings, adjusting her angle to dodge the attack.

... yet, she felt the claws brushing against her. A wide smile came to her face as she felt it... although internally, she frowned. WAY too close!

SLAM!

Cynder felt the world spin for a moment as Gaul proceed to use his momentum to continue his combo, finally swinging his left hand back toward her into a powerful jab which actually connected.

The female was sent slamming into her back and slid away from Gaul. That... didn't feel good at all.

But far from letting it get to her, Cynder quickly spun, getting back up, back turned to Gaul. The female flapped her wings slowly, spinning back to face Gaul as if doing a mating dance of sorts.

"Hmmm... so you're not so slow... Teeheehee! This might be fun yet!" she taunted.

"I wouldn't get too confident if I were you Cynder! It has always been your flaw..." replied the monstrous mutant.

The two stared at each others, Cynder waiting for Gaul to move before moving herself. Considering his strength and speed, she knew that she would have to counter all of his moves to win. There was no alternative considering who she is up against. Thus, she stood there, smirking, waiting for him to move.

But then, she recognized too late what the suspicious Gaul had on his face meant. The female flapped her wings and kicked into the ground as fast as she could to send herself out of the way as Gaul's unnatural eye glowed.

Then, a beam was shot from it and traveled across the ground, cutting through the rock like butter.

ZZZZZZZIP!

SCHLLLG!

Cynder had been too late and although she did manage to avoid having the beam pierce through her forehead, it did went through her left side. The pain was absolutely incredible ; it felt like a thin sword blade had slice deep, deep into her body without meeting any sort of resistance. It also burnt as heck, the smell of burnt flesh coming up to her in an instant... her burnt flesh.

Thus, she tripped and painfully landed on her side. Breathing heavily as she tried to get a hold, she slowly looked at herself to see what damage had been inflicted and she frowned at what had been done.

As thin as the laser beam was, as powerful as it was. There was a wide, deep cut of burnt scales and flesh across the left side of her body. Most importantly, it had struck the base of her left wing, almost cutting it off, and had also sliced through her left thigh, striking the muscles of her left hind leg. Thankfully, due to how concentrated the beam was, it didn't left her bleeding too much. Nothing but a few drops... still, the pain was almost unbearable... almost.

The female gripped the ground with her right paw and lifted herself until she was back on her feet. Her leg feels weak but it still seems the injury didn't actually break it or anything. Her wing was a bigger concern and she tried to flap it a bit. It felt incredibly fragile, as if it would snap any second now... but apart from that, it was surprisingly like normal.

At this moment, a strange feeling of satisfaction rose within Cynder and she smirked evilly as she turned to face Gaul.

As expected, Gaul stood there, panting. His eye laser was a fearsome attack but it was also extremely taxing, demanding that he concentrate deeply for the duration of the attack, focusing all of his power. Despite being hit, Cynder knew that she had the advantage now and it caused her to smirk. As he stood there, vulnerable, the pain suddenly seemed so sweet, so satisfying... for despite his best efforts, he couldn't truly damage her.

Slowly, the dragoness swung her tail around as she prepared to pounce, adjusting her stance to compensate for her injuries... and then, she pounced, roaring cutely as she did so. Yet, Gaul knew he was in trouble and cursed internally.

The Dark One brought his hand down and prepared to unleash a mighty uppercut... but he hadn't recovered yet and as such, his attack came off too slow to strike the female, who effortlessly soared above his fist before colliding with his face.

"You're mine." she whispered.

The monkey-like creature let out an appropriately monkey-like cry of anger as he felt pain, Cynder raking into his face with her claws, her eyes glowing with intense hatred as she did so, her face deformed by a sadistic grin. The Dark One couldn't help but recoil from the pain as the female slashed into him with her claws and then, once he got a hold of himself and was about to punch that annoying black thing off his face, Cynder winded up and...

SMACK!

"AAAAAAAAARG!" Gaul couldn't keep it in.

His glowing eye was the nexus of his power and his most sensitive body part. When Cynder slammed her right wing into it, the claw at the tip of the wing's thumb of sorts first, Gaul almost lost his footing, blood gushing out of the pierced eye. Cynder unstuck her wing's claw from inside his eye, savoring the moment as she felt the warm crimson liquid covering her wing's.

Then, before the Dark One king could recover, the female winded up and then, flapped both wings before sending herself slamming downward, spinning as she did so.

SWAAAAAAASH!

Cynder violently whipped Gaul right in the face with her tail as she brought herself down, a wide, deep cut right across the king's face. Not only did the whipping sliced his face nearly open but the can opener-shaped blade at the end of her tail dug into his flesh and tore through his face, almost tearing the skin off it.

As Cynder leaped backward, away from the king, Gaul lost all focus on the fight and brought both of his hands to his face as he held his bleeding face in pain. A brutal reminder that even as a hatchling, Cynder's trademark tail whip strikes were every bit as painful and deadly as always.

Cynder stood there, smiling, as Gaul staggered, his face soon enough covering in red due to the massive damage that had been inflicted upon it.

"What's wrong? I thought you defeated the purple dragon? Surely, a cute little female like me shouldn't be too much trouble!" taunted the dragoness in a falsely innocent tone.

The Dark One froze and then, slowly, placed his hands off his face on his sides. His face... looked terrible. Due to Cynder's attacks, it was barely recognizable and looked more like raw hamburger with a sole eyeball stuck on the left side than a face. Gaul's expression was one of such pure, intense rage that one thought he could see the smoke that was coming out of the Dark One's misshapen nose.

Then, rather than an answer, Gaul screamed in rage and brought his hands together as flames begun to gather.

Gaul's very own Fury attack.

Cynder knew she was in trouble. She remembered Spyro's own Fury and knew that if it was anything like his, she needed to put some distance between herself and him ; attacking him in this state will do no good.

And well, it proved to be a good idea as just as she kicked into the ground and send herself backward, the flames that had gathered into Gaul's body were shot in the air under the form of a single beam that then exploded into a real rain of fireballs. The fiery meteors all slammed into the ground around Gaul, soon forming a massive ring of fire.

Yet, although she had avoided being scorched by the meteor, she was not out of the woods yet as the remainder of Gaul's Fury energy was shot into the rings, causing a large barrage of fireballs to be sent flying toward Cynder.

As the fireballs grew closer, a doubt rose within Cynder and fear begun to rise again.

NO! She cannot allow herself to be impressed! She has pierced Gaul's eye, smacked him into his weak point! It's on the ropes! She cannot allow him to make a comeback! Not now!

She then saw it. Although the barrage was impressive, she could see gaps in the wall of bouncing, flying fireballs... a gap large enough for a small dragon hatchling such as herself to fit through.

Cynder thrown herself toward the gap, hoping for the best...

Time seemed to slow down as she felt the fireballs so close up. She could feel the fire and it burnt... pain...

... and then, she tripped and fell down on her stomach.

Breathe... breathe...

Is... is she still alive? She felt the heat... did she burn?

She slowly realized that, indeed, she was alive. The fireballs had come so close but she had not caught on fire.

She did it! Gaul's attack missed!

She got up, smiling proudly, decided to show Gaul a little fire of her own!... but her smile vanished almost instantly.

Gaul had now begun to spin like a top. It looked silly but Cynder knew perfectly what this attack was.

Gaul's tornado spin, his mightiest attack.

The hatchling had never been able to dodge this attack and she knew that even though the platform was big, she wouldn't be able to. Terror filled her eyes and she begun to run toward the edge of the platform, wishing to put herself as much distance between herself and the monkey as possible.

Yet, as she ran, she progressively begun to slow down even thought she still kicked into the ground as quickly with her paws... and looking back, she saw the tornado that was now Gaul approaching slowly, the powerful gusts of wind dragging her closer and closer to her doom.

No! No! She did not get this far only to be killed by that attack! It's not fair! It's... it's...

She forgot about the revenge at this moment. All she wanted was not to die.

She couldn't help but let out a loud whine filled with despair as she increased her pace, trying in vain to get out of the way.

But it served her no good in the end and she yelped loudly as the winds teared her off the platform. The world became an incoherent blur as she was spun around at incredible speed and then, suddenly, time froze.

The platform was now gone, Gaul was nowhere in sight... what had happened?

She looked down and she realized in horror that it was the final phase of the attack. She had been sent flying sky-high by the attack which now meant that she was going to...

"NOOOOOOO!"

SCRUNLCH!

A sickening sound of crushed bones and flesh echoed as Cynder was slammed into the ground with absolutely incredible strength.

As Gaul stopped spinning, he stood there, panting, completely drained. He had used up all of his power and with his eye now pierced, there would be no way he would be able to recover. Not that it matters. Cynder had what she wanted. One last battle...

He approached the body of Cynder and gave it a few weak kicks to make sure she had been properly crushed.

... looks like she was.

Who did she think she was anyway? His tornado spin is an impossible to avoid move that is always lethal. No creature, NONE, can resist its power. She should have known that he would have used it eventually.

Still, she gave him a surprising amount of challenge considering. This was definitely a good final battle... and with all the time spent fighting, he can now see the red shrouding all of his view. The abyss's maw is near... it won't be long now.

* * *

It was a distant memory and yet, she had never forgot it. He had always been the only one ever to show her kindness and for this, she had been thankful. Yet, she knew that it would end like this. This had been his will all along...

... or is it?

It is... truly his will?

She could remember it, how he had once been so caring, so gentle, so compassionate toward her. It was why she had always served him. It was why she served him, not Gaul, although Gaul was his hands, the tool through which he could interact with the world.

And at this moment, she finally realized something.

This entire stupid war... all of the deaths... the genocide of her specie...

The Dark Master had felt different during those years. When he begun to give her instructions, his voice changed. It was still the same but... she felt something different in it, something that wasn't there before.

... despair and fear.

He was not the Dark Master that had loved her anymore. He had become a monster, driven for some reason into a mad path, growing obsessed with the idea of getting out.

... but why?

No, that was not the question.

He had transformed years ago. He was... gone and when she heard his voice, she knew it was true.

The Dark Master will never return for the simple reason that he is now truly gone. His spirit has changed and his kindness has been fully erased. He is now a tortured being, thinking only of his own selfish desire, ready to sacrifice all those who once believed in him to achieve it.

He is gone... and she is now truly alone.

... but then, she had a vision.

In the darkness, falling toward the eternal fire, a broken soul clad in purple, crying and sobbing.

And then, she remembered him, how he had forgiven her, how he had cared about her, how he had protected her and had never asked for anything in return.

She couldn't die now.

* * *

Gaul suddenly turned as he heard coughing.

Slowly, Cynder's body stirred as she coughed blood, opening her eyes. She was in a bad shape and yet, he saw her, slowly getting up.

B-b-but... how? No one can survive the tornado spin! He sent her flying and slammed her, crushing her! Just a few seconds earlier, she was lying down in her blood, which had formed a pool under her, lifeless! How could this be?!?

But then, he remembered that sometimes, one can get really close to death, so much that the body doesn't seem to be breathing anymore and yet, the creature is not yet dead.

His face deforming into a mix of frustration and anger, he stepped forward.

"Will you die, you stupid scaly vermin?!?"

Cynder fearlessly glared back as he got closer and despite being unable to catch on his breath, winded up for his famous crushing body blow. Surely THAT will finish her off!

"It's my turn now." she said in an abnormally calm tone.

Then, as she rose, he delivered the punch, smashing his fist into her chest with enough strength to break down a concrete wall but against all odds, the strike did absolutely nothing. Cynder didn't even feel it.

... and then, as the flames begun to gather, Gaul's eyes widened as he realized what Cynder had done.

"No..." he whispered as he spun around and begun to run, panic beginning to get a hold of his mind.

BOOOOOOOM!

Gaul's remaining eye widened as he screamed in pain, the massive wave of intense heat slamming into his back and melting his skin while the meteors slammed into his bones and organs, burning him inside-out as he ran.

BOOOOOOOM!

The Fury attack's final wave was shot and went right through Gaul. Gaul had a mix of fear and surprise on his face when his body was reduced to ashes.

Cynder slowly landed as the ashes of the once mighty Dark One king scattered.

The dragoness stood there, panting. It all felt unreal... Not only was she alive but Gaul... he was finally gone? Could this be? Did she... really win?

Although her body ached all over, she slowly walked to the spot where Gaul used to be and saw the half-burnt Soul Gauntlet, all that was left of him... and then, finally, she realized that it was real.

Her revenge was accomplished, Gaul was finally dead. At long last, she was even with her past, the source of her nightmares finally destroyed.

For a moment, a feeling of intense satisfaction washed all over her... and then, she saw a light in the darkness. A yellow one, more exactly.

Sparx was flying just above her, staring at her intently...

"I don't like you. I'll say it here and now... but if you die here, Spyro will flip! Come on!"

"Sparx... it cannot be..." but then, the dragonfly interrupted her and pointed to a serie of platforms.

"I don't want to hear any of that! Come on! Let's follow the clearly marked way before we fall into that freaky red miasma down there!" and then, as Sparx pointed to the horizon, she saw them.

A serie of platforms conveniently forming a serie of stairs that led to a strange tower in the horizon... a tower that was NOT falling.

... salvation.

But... could she truly go to him after all she did? Could she truly be forgiven?

But then, looking at Sparx, she remembered his words, how he had never trusted her... and now, he shown her the way to salvation.

Gaul is dead and Spyro is depending on her. She will not let the past bring her down anymore.

Despite her injuries, Cynder gathered all of her strength and begun to leap from platform to platform, fighting off the gravity and climbing her way toward the mysterious tower, Sparx following close by as she climbed...

Spyro is waiting for her...

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	7. Mother

OFF: Well, it took quite a while but finally, the next chapter is done! The wait was quite big for this one but it's the longest chapter to date.

I hope that you will all find the wait to be worth it! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 6: Mother**

The Dark Master is an abomination from times unknown. Only Pure Light will slay the Beast of Darkness.

* * *

"You lost, Spyro." the Dark Master taunted as he sunk.

The Dark Master... the source of all evil and suffering. He was a frightening dream, a horrific nightmare and no one can wake up. He thought he could have ended the nightmare... he truly believed that the Prophecy would be fulfilled but in the end, the Darkness swallowed him.

Falling through the liquid atmosphere of the Dark Realm, only void awaiting him beyond.

He did not know how long he has been falling. What did it matter, anyway?

The Dark Master won, Cynder betrayed him, Sparx was gone, the Guardians were doomed, his entire home Realm was doomed.

"You have fought admirably, Spyro. You were a most worthy opponent... but ultimately, you were no match for the power of the Dark Master. It's all over, now."

Even now, he can't shake this feeling that he heard the Dark Master's voice before. Yet, he knows that the first time he had heard it was after the battle of Convexity. Yet, he couldn't shake the feeling as if... as if he had always knew this voice.

Even at this moment, at his own final moments, Spyro did not know why he felt like he had always known the sound of the Dark Master's voice.

He had stopped struggling. He had stopped fighting. There was no point to it anymore. Resistance was futile and he knew it.

All he could do was cry. Cry in sadness and regret, begging the Dark Master to have mercy upon his soul and finish him off already.

But the Dark Master was patient. He wanted to appreciate his victory and he would do so, savoring every last moment of the purple dragon.

A mighty warrior, Spyro had been... but in the Dark Realm, inside of the Dark Master's world, Spyro was nothing more than one more broken soul, a harmless and defenseless hatchling that cried in agony, calling in vain to its loved ones. In this cursed place, Spyro's powers were no longer.

BAM!

In a way, considering the fall, maybe Spyro should have broken something yet, although painful, the impact was strangely mild, only feeling a few bruises but no actual injuries. The Dark Master's power had healed him, removing the injuries that he had received during his fights back in the physical plane. But his renewed body was of little help to the purple dragon. Without his friends, with the betrayal of Cynder, his soul lacked the courage and inner strength to oppose the Dark Master.

"After I have dealt with you once and for all, I will be able to return to the Dragon Land Realm and rule it. It shall be grandiose, the beginning of a new, eternal reign! But you, little dragon, shall not be alive to see it. Do you what was your fate, ultimately? Look below... and see..."

It was unknown by what force Spyro got up and walked near the edges of the tower of bone. Certainly not by his own will. He had been so completely defeated, his body wasn't even his already anymore. All he could do was look at what the Dark Master wanted him to look at, at the abyss below...

The screams of those who fell to the Dark Master... countless souls falling every second into the endless abyss, devoured by the gapping maw of the Darkness, condemned to become one with the infernal flames way below...

He wouldn't even get eternal rest in death. The Dark Master was going to throw him into those flames and he knew it.

"Even with all your efforts, you will have failed to save even your own soul. Such a pity. Still, there is no shame to be had, Spyro. It was written that I would triumph on this night. All you can do now is brace yourself, embrace your fate, and make the big jump yourself... unless you want me to prolong your agony, not that it will end when you reach those flames. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. HA!"

He contemplated the void and the endless expense of red and yellow below. Despite the screams, despite the unholiness of this Realm, there was a sense of twisted beauty to it all. One couldn't help but see how finely crafted the tower of bone was, all of the skulls, all of the spines, all of the bones forming a perfectly smooth surface, a pillar so finely crafted it rivaled the architecture of the dragons' holy structures. The Realm itself had an eerie, desperate beauty to it, the yellow endlessly dancing in the red of the flames, forming a creepy dance of lights. It was the most unholy and terrifying of all sights... but no fear was left in Spyro's heart. He had nothing left. The Dark Master took all of it away.

"So... what will it be? One last futile attempt to fight back... or the acceptance of your fate?"

Is there a point to the fight? Why should he try to resist now that he's sure that all he cares about is gone and that his fate is sealed?

Before, he had an ideal, something to protect. How can he fight when he has nothing left to protect? He doesn't even have his anger left. Anger never carried him far anyway.

Yet... as broken as he is, he still retain the fear of death and he realized that he is afraid, deeply terrified even.

Many thoughts flashed into his head... and he was reminded of how small he is, how young he is. He's nothing but a hatchling after all and deep down, like all children, he longed for life and happiness. Even if it was stupid and in vain, he wanted to live, he wanted to carry on forward. Even with everything gone, he wished to try...

Try? Try to achieve what? Even if he escapes now, the Dark Master is now free and all that he cares about, doomed. What is there to find out there? What is there to achieve?

Sparx... Sparx, where is he? Did he... did he truly...

No, no. Denial again. Deny it. He must have escaped the portal, he must still be out there. He must still be alive...

"Sparx? Your adoptive brother? Why would you want to find him?"

He is his brother...

"Why should you care for him? Doesn't he make fun of your weight, your wings, your flight handicap? Doesn't he turn to derision your title, your fate, everything? The truth is... he is a pathetic jerk that cares only for himself."

The memories came...

The dragonfly's evil smirk, his sarcastic lines, him pointing his finger at him again and again and again... never stopping... never shutting up.

Forever insulting him, not even a single good word coming out. Not even gratitude for when he saved him in those countless occasions...

But surely... the Guardians?

"They sit at their Temple, waiting for you to do everything for them. When was the last time you actually saw a Guardian fight?"

...never.

He never saw any of them fight.

Yet, they constantly tell him to go to places, to risk his lives for them... and sometimes, without even giving him the reason.

They use him...

"And then... there is Cynder."

He trusted her, he thought she was free...

...but she had been lying to him, awaiting the moment to help the Dark Master returns.

"In the end... you are alone. You have no one to protect, nothing to fight for. All of it... for nothing."

Spyro felt... cold. But this was not the same feeling he had felt when he had stepped inside of Dante's Freezer or other locations with sub-zero temperatures. It was a different kind of cold. One that... calmed him down...

Nothing was important anymore, not even his pain. The void came before him, in all of its glory, revealing the true shape of Darkness to him... that of pure emptiness, the true opposite of Light.

The Darkness washed over him, clawing at his mind and removing everything that once made him into the being known as Spyro.

Why was the Dark Master taking over him in his final moment?

The final answer eluded him and little did he care. It was all over. Even the Dark Realm itself was consumed by the void, his eyes failing him.

...and then, when nothing remained, that all sounds stopped coming and that he felt the full, total numbness of his empty mind, he saw something.

Although everything had faded, a scene remained in his sight of view, its reality refusing to fade.

When every single illusion that made up his life shattered, the last vision remained very real.

Familiar figures... familiar faces... but why?

SLAP!

Spyro's eyes widened and he yelped loudly as he was brutally brought back to reality by Sparx. He quickly looked around, panicked before noticing them. Sparx and Cynder, standing at his sides.

But he also felt a third presence, that one from within his mind. The Dark Master...

"Spyro! What's wrong with you, buddy? Anyone's home?" for a moment, Spyro thought he felt annoyed as Sparx waved at him right in his face...

"Man! What's wrong with him? He doesn't answer to anything!... and what's the deal with the darker scales? I don't know about you but he feels a bit... off."

Those pleading eyes... why was she here? How dare she, after what she has done?

"Spyro, please! Don't let him control you."

Despite the dizziness, despite the intoxicating power that flowed through him and threatened to once again engulf his mind, he found the strength to voice out his confusion. Why was Cynder telling him to resist the one she serves willingly? "But... why? Isn't he... your master?"

She approached him, getting closer. He could see into her eyes... and it was then that finally, he noticed it. Even though it was the same Dark Power, even though it was the same green eyes as all other servants of the Dark Master... he could see it within. The kindness, the desire for forgiveness...

"Be... because I like you..."

Despite her allegiance and feelings for the Dark Master, ultimately, she had chosen him. She had not lied, after all...

And then, Sparx...

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, crossing his arms. "You expect me to run away now? Just when we're about to see the very face of terror itself? Nah!"

Within his mind, the memories stirred. Cynder's betrayal, Sparx's hypocrisy...

But he also remembered something else. Cynder saved him back at the Temple of Souls. She pleaded with Gaul and prevented him from killing him. Then, she knocked him out of the Well of Souls' light when the possession was about to be completed. Sparx... he always stood at his side, no matter what happened. Always doing his best to help him, no matter how small and terrified he might be...

He is... not alone.

As Spyro stood up, he saw him. A massive shadow shaped like the dragon statue that was within the Dragon Temple, back at home. Its eyes glowed with evil and all three souls recognized the one they were facing.

"Spyro. Your body is mine!" announced the Dark Master, high and loud, pointing at him with his right paw.

All three beings stared at the Dark Master as he stood there, oozing hatred.

And then, after a moment of silence, Sparx spoke up.

"What? That's it? The so-called Dark Master? Pfft! How lame! That freaky ape-like king was scarier! Give me a break!"

Cynder, herself, seemed confused about this situation. Spyro, likewise, felt the grip of the Dark Master weakening. He didn't even need to fight back. He was strong. The Dark Master cannot touch him. He stepped forward...

"I agree. I thought you would be an overwhelming force of evil... yet, you cower on this tower, only making weak attempts at confusing me." the purple dragon slammed his paws into the floor and took on a fighting stance. "I am not afraid! I will fulfill the Prophecy!"

The Dark Master reared back and then, roared at the top of his lungs. A deafening, terrifying roar. For a moment, Spyro and Cynder made a step backward, Sparx's face turning a bit pale. Still, the three didn't turn away, they didn't run away. They all stood their ground and waited for the evil being's attack...

...and after a moment, Sparx regained his colors and turned to Spyro, crossing his arms.

"Alright. Is it me or shouldn't he have attacked by now? What's wrong with that guy?"

Spyro stared intently at the shadow... and then, slowly, made a step forward. He thought he had seen something...

And then, slowly, Cynder did so as well.

Even Sparx felt his fear gradually disappearing, approaching the Dark Master slowly, gazing into his shape.

"FOOLS! You shall not make a step further! I will possess your body, Spyro, and rule the world!" the Dark Master's voice echoed through the entire Dark Realm... but none of the three even raised an eyebrow. It was as if they didn't hear it.

"Hey Spyro. Is it me or does he looks a bit off?" asked the dragonfly, raising an eyebrow.

The purple dragon slowly sat down, relaxing, nodding. "Yeah. He seems... fake."

Cynder made another step forward...

"If you step forward, then I shall destroy all of you!" Cynder ignored the taunt and made yet another step.

"You are my servant! Obey me! Do not get any closer!" the dragoness once again approaching, beginning to understand something...

"NO! NO! Not one step closer! NOT ONE!"

And then, Cynder poked through the shadow and touched flesh. In an instant, the Dark Master's concentration was broken and the illusion faded away, the massive shadow quickly disappearing as mysteriously as it had appeared.

And then, a mix of shock and horror overcame all three souls.

Just over the edge of the tower was a pillar that reached all the way into the skies... a pillar of flesh. More exactly, of purple flesh. Thousands of purple dragons of all ages, sizes, and genders all merged into a single, grotesque pillar of flesh, bones, spines, skulls, wings, tails, and claws intertwined to form the most horrible structure the three had probably ever seen.

"All of the purple dragons that ever were... forever stuck in their final expression, bound to this cursed Realm..." whispered Cynder, stepping backward.

And then, they saw him. The Dark Master's true form.

"Your... your body will be mine! MINE!" cried the small purple dragon hatchling, constantly flinging his limbs around in a vain attempt at repelling the long, spike-covered tentacles that were slowly dragging him, inch by inch, toward the pillar.

At this moment, Sparx almost felt like bursting into laughter from the irony. For all this time, the Dark Master had never been a dark god or anything. He was nothing more than one of Spyro's predecessors, a terrified little purple dragon.

"So... this explains it..." said the dragoness, looking down as she felt shame rise within her heart. "This is why... you changed."

She slowly approached the dragon, shaking her head. "The time to face the consequences of the crimes you committed in life was drawing near so rather than accepting to face the consequences of your acts, you manipulated me, and all those who once believed in you, so that you could get out." she could feel the tears come to her as she spoke the horrible truth.

"I... I trusted you! I loved you! I... I thought you loved me! But you used me! You used all of us only because you were afraid! Because you had never paid for your sins and that your end was drawing near!"

As Cynder accused him, the fear begun to grow within the eyes of the fallen purple dragon. He shook his head quickly, struggling more and more.

"No! No! You don't understand! Look! If you allow me to get into your friend's body, I'll do whatever you want! Riches! Fame! Power! I'll give you everything you want!" he pleaded.

The tears continued to flow for a moment... and then, after a while, her face hardened, her sadness morphed to anger, and her paws begun to tremble...

"I thought you were sincere. I thought you had changed. But even after your death, you remained selfish. Years within the Dark Realm did nothing. You have brought this upon yourself! The Dark Master I once knew is DEAD!"

And with a mighty roar, Cynder spun around and violently slammed her tail into the Dark Master's body, the can opener-shaped blade at the end of her tail slicing effortlessly through the fallen dragon's chest and knocking him backward.

The Dark Master literally screamed like the terrified hatchling he was as the tentacles engulfed him within the depths of the pillar. His horrible, nightmarish, demented visage disappeared among the amalgam of purple dragon faces, becoming one with them...

It was all over. The Dark Master was finally gone...

"Well... that was anti-climatic..." whispered Sparx, barely believing what had happened. It was all over, finally... and the Dark Master had proven himself most weak, surprisingly. In fact, he didn't put up a fight. What a joke...

"Cynder, are you alright?" well, nice to see that Spyro is out of his emo phase and is once again back to his older self. He's already near Cynder, asking if she's alright.

"Y-yeah... I think so..." a bit hard to believe considering she just killed off the one that had been her adoptive father for such a long time...

There was a silence and then, finally, the two smiled. A feeling of satisfaction filled the dragonfly as he watched the two. Sure, Spyro and Cynder were now staring in each others' eyes in that oh-so-cute and obvious way. Hard to believe that they can STILL think of such things after everything they went through. But then, are they even noticing it? The two sure are oblivious, some times!

"Hey Spyro!" he called, smirking.

Both dragons turned to the dragonfly, wondering what he wanted.

"It's not that I don't enjoy watching you and Cynder getting kissy-kissy but could you wait until we're out of that freaky place before thinking about making tons of naked little reptilian hatchlings? And well, I got a few questions there such as... why the heck was the Dark Master an ugly copy of you?"

The comment had the effect of a bomb on their moods and soon enough, the both of them were glaring daggers at Sparx.

"Oh cut it out! We're just friends!" said Spyro, for probably the hundredth time.

Cynder, her, rolled her eyes. Why was he always annoying them like this? But then, as she looked at Spyro, she did begin to wonder...

She did care about him, that was true. But on another hand, Sparx had a point. Even though he always worried about him and was acting all protective all the time, always chasing her, she still endured him, her who liked to be independent. Then, there was the fact that he did some crazy stuff for her in the first place. Was this all just friendship? He didn't know. He couldn't know, he was still a hatchling... and well, so is she. But still... she was an adult once, she felt the flow of hormones once... and well, although she no longer feels it, she suspects that...

...nah, that's crazy. She lost her adoptive father. He revealed himself to be a coward breaking her heart and then she had to kill him off herself. She's just traumatized, falling back on Spyro for emotional support. It doesn't mean anything. Actually, she wonders how she manages not to burst into tears, considering...

In fact, she feels... warm and safe. And at this moment, she figured out how she managed to cope out with the guilt, how she managed to stick by his side despite her past. As she stood there, she felt... happy, truly happy. She couldn't help but smile, not noticing her tail slowly intertwining with his own...

"It's all over now..." she slowly said.

At long last, the nightmare is over. She can finally put her past aside and begin anew... for real, this time. She is no longer bound to this place and its inhabitants. The time has come to... huh? What?

"Spyro? What's wrong, Spyro?" why was he looking down like this?... and why did she have this ominous feeling, all of a sudden?

"The voice... it was not the Dark Master's." he said, troubled.

"Huh? What do you mean by "not the Dark Master's"? You always raved on about how the Dark Master wouldn't stop calling to you!" said the dragonfly, not liking where this was going at all.

Spyro was troubled. The voice, it had always felt so familiar and then, there is the power. The Dark Master was the embodiment of darkness! How come the power is still lingering in his soul with the Dark Master gone?

But then, at this moment, the voice echoed through his mind one last time and Spyro's eyes widened when he realized whose voice it was.

Cynder's tail let go of his as she stepped away from him, growing increasingly worried. What was happening to Spyro? What's wrong?!?

"Spyro! What's the matter?"

As he turned to her, she saw confusion and fear... but mostly confusion. What shocked her the most was when she still saw her former master's spirit within. But how?!? He's dead! She killed him herself!

"Cynder... the voice... it was my own."

There was a brief moment of silence as neither Cynder nor Sparx could think of anything to say.

And then, after a moment, the dragoness looked down. This couldn't be and yet, when she thought about it...

"Oh come on! Are you telling us that all this time, you were calling out to yourself? That this Dark Power thingy was from within? Come on!" said Sparx, throwing his arms up.

"No, Spyro's right." interrupted Cynder, raising her head and looking anew at Spyro. She then got closer and nodded as the purple dragon looked down, shaking his head.

"But... how? Why would it be my own voice?"

"Yeah, no offense but that's really, REALLY weird. I mean, we ran into really weird things on our way here but that gotta take the cake! That's crazy, I tell you!" added the dragonfly, trying to sound confident although he was every bit as confused as everyone else.

"The answer is simple. It was your voice because that you always had the power to begin with."

Everyone's eyes widened, startled by the sudden echo. And then, after a while of looking around, seeing no one, Sparx said aloud: "Okay! Who was that?"

"Look, children..."

And at this moment, Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx all had the same reaction at the exact same time. Their jaws dropped and their eyes widened.

Before the three was probably the largest, strangest-looking dragoness they had ever seen.

To say that this dragoness was monstrous was an understatement. She was a snake-like creature, her flexible snake body stretching on forever toward the abyss. Near the top, a head that, for lack of better words, looked like Cynder's head had looked when she was possessed except with a flatter snout, giving it a more snake-like appearance. The creature had three pairs of wings that stretched beyond the horizon, the creature having two long, bony arms that ended with three-fingered clawed paws. The creature would have probably seemed majestic if it wasn't from the sheer amount of evil that oozed out of its frame, making it look as if it was constantly surrounded by pure black flames of evil.

This aura, those glowing green eyes, the unnatural black and dark red scales that seemed to nullify all light... this creature was emitting an aura that was almost as evil as the Dark Master's...

...no... more evil than the Dark Master's... VASTLY more evil.

Although they had never seen this dragoness before nor heard of her, all three of them learnt the true meaning of terror. Spyro totally lost control over his body as he begun to tremble, Sparx literally turned white, and Cynder was thankful that she didn't drink anything earlier for else, she would have wet herself on the spot. The gaze of that creature was so terrible that one could FEEL the hatred pierce through your heart and claw at your courage... It was the very gaze of evil itself.

But this wasn't the strangest fact about this dragoness, far from it.

What thrown Spyro's and Cynder's minds into total confusion was that despite the aura of pure, raw evil, they still felt... warm. They felt as if they knew this dragoness and they felt... at home...

Deep within, although they had never met this being, they knew it was their mother, no matter how evil she might be... which couldn▓t be weirder, considering they aren't related.

The conflicting feelings between the terror of looking at evil itself and the feeling of seeing "their mother" thrown them off-guard.

Then, after a moment, the dragoness brought her clawed hands together and closed her eyes, a peaceful expression coming to her.

"Welcome, young hatchlings. I am the origin of all dragons... the mother of all dragons... the very first Ancestor. I am... Vermintrax."

When her voice stopped echoing through the Realm, the massive snake-like dragoness looked down. All three of her guests were still shaking with fear. Looks like she can continue with her speech undisturbed...

"Let me tell you a story, young ones... Long ago, so long ago, before the time of dragons, way before any dragons lived, there was a serpent, a snake if you will. There shouldn't have been anything peculiar about this snake except that it found itself at the wrong place at the wrong moment. Although usually, only dead souls weighted down by evil deeds fall into it, the snake passed over a gate to the Dark Realm just as it opened, in the middle of one Night of Eternal Darkness. The snake fell into the Dark Realm..."

Although still frozen by fear, the three listened and wondered... What was this dragoness talking about? A snake? What had this snake have to do with anything?

"Inside of the Dark Realm, time does not flow like the outside world. The snake was mutated by the radiations, becoming... something else. It grew and grew until it was as gigantic as a tower. Horns grew behind its head and limbs begun to grow. Eventually, massive wings sprouted from the snake's back, allowing it to fly away from the burning flames. Yet... the creature remained in pain and in confusion. Why was it in this place? It had done nothing to deserve such a fate..."

The dragoness paused and smiled, looking at her guests...

"Eventually, an angel took pity upon the snake. After all, it had done nothing to deserve the horrible fate of staying in that cursed Realm. He descended into the depths of the Dark Realm and there, grabbed into the mutated snake and brought it with him as he left the Realm, heading into what is now your home Realm..."

Vermintrax then closed her eyes, as if remembering something...

"The angel was a kind soul... and so was the snake. It was an innocent, pure being that had never done anything to anger the powers that be and its containment, far from corrupting it, had disgusted it forever of all things related to evil. The two were, ironically, mirrors of each others, both pure. Intrigued by this soul, the angel chose to remain as a physical being for a while longer, wishing to see how this strange creature would evolve... and eventually, new feelings begun to be felt by both souls and then, a desire was brought forth..."

The giant dragoness' wicked expression then became softer and at this moment, the three felt... it was hard to explain but they could feel something inside of this being. Even despite the aura of pure hatred, there was something inside of it... something different.

"From the union of those two, a new specie was born. A unique specie, made of self-aware beings that resembled both their mother and father in shape and nature. The new specie was called "dragons" and the first generation, born out of the mother and father, were called "Ancestors" for, from them, all other dragons would be born."

And then, finally, the shock became great enough to allow the three to overcome the effects of the aura. Sparx was the first to speak, turning to Spyro...

"Is it me or does that means that..."

Spyro stared at the creature. This meant that... that... he couldn't believe it and yet, deep within, he knew it was true. He had felt it.

"I fear it is. So you are..."

Vermintrax nodded slowly.

"I am the first Ancestor, the Mother of all dragons. The mate of Mortalis, the Lunar Dragon."

Cynder then stepped forward. Something was off and she was determined to find out what it was.

"This is quite a tale but why are you sealed within this Realm? And why are you surrounded by such a foul aura?!? It's even worse than the Dark Master's!"

At this moment, the dragoness' kind smile was twisted into a sadistic grin, insanity soon invading her eyes as she glared at the small black dragoness as if she was a piece of tasty meat, her mouth revealing a set of extremely sharp, shiny pearly whites that neither of the three young ones wished to see from up close.

"That is because my story is not over... look, young ones..." and at this moment, Vermintrax motioned toward the pillar of purple dragons, causing it to open and revealing a blinding light...

...and then, in an instant, Spyro, Sparx, and Cynder all had the same vision.

A magnificent city, stretching beyond the horizon. A city all of white stone, bathing in pure light, its high towers stretching endlessly through the skies. Then, in the middle of it all, an altar.

Forming a circle, Spyro and Cynder recognized all of the figures. The descriptions fitted them perfectly, all of them. The Ancestors...

...and in the middle, the shape of Vermintrax. She was the same physically and yet, she seemed so... different. Her aura was one of kindness, of loving care. Her face spoke only of calm, peace, and serenity. Floating near her, the strangest dragon they had ever seen. A purple dragon with a head shaped like a cross, three crimson eyes watching all of the souls within the city with utmost care. The dragon had a thin, delicate frame, massive azure feather-covered wings replacing its limbs, three extra pairs of feathery wings replacing the usual dragon wings. Its tail ended with a cross-shaped blade and three golden rings constantly revolved around its head.

Mortalis, the Lunar Dragon... and the father of all dragons. The angel that had descended from the Heavenly Realm to watch over all dragonkind...

"With the help of their children, the immortal Ancestors, Mortalis and Vermintrax ruled over dragonkind with kindness and utmost care. Under their reign, the dragons prospered, their civilization developed, the traditions were formed. For countless generations, peace reigned..." Vermintrax's voice echoed through the lands.

...and then, suddenly, the entire city became black, dark clouds covering the skies. And then, there were the cries of pain, the screams of terror, flames... and everything disappeared.

The three awakened, back into the Dark Realm, Vermintrax stared at them...

"But... the Ancestors eventually grew dissatisfied with their parents. They wished to expend the boundaries of civilization, to reign over everything. Their divine blood inspired them with ambition, making them believe that as dragons were divine beings, they had the right to rule over everything, that they were superior to all life. And when Mortalis and Vermintrax would stop them, they grew jealous..."

The creature smiled bitterly, a pained expression coming to her, as if remembering a horrible moment of her life.

"The Ancestors united and drove Mortalis out, exiling him into the depths of space from which he would never escape. As for Vermintrax... they chained her and drove blades, spears, saws, fire, ice, wind, electricity, and all other harmful things they could think of into her body. They tortured her, her who had loved them, for days. Day after night after day after night... more pain... continual, intense pain... and the hatred in their eyes, the envy..."

The giant dragoness almost choked, the pain still very real in her mind.

"The... they tortured me... day after day... the hatred in their eyes. I... I loved them and they did this to me. They twisted my body... they destroyed me..." and then, at this moment, the illusion faded, revealing the horrific truth.

"Oh. My. Goodness." whispered Sparx, eyes widened. Neither Spyro nor Cynder could say anything, their expressions identical to Sparx's.

Vermintrax's scales had been almost entirely torn off her body revealing her rotten, scarred flesh. Her wings were twisted and torn, the marks of the hooks that had bound and twisted them still visible. Her eyes were misshapen and swollen from the various blades and hammers that had impacted upon them. Half of her face was totally gone, revealing the shattered skull underneath. Her arms were twisted into odd angles, revealing that they had been broken and crushed at almost twenty different places at once. Her very claws had obviously been torn off and placed back on the wrong side in order to inflict further pain. Her shape... was horrific beyond belief.

"I... I couldn't keep it in anymore. After weeks of torture I... I... I snapped." she cried, trying to keep herself from bursting into tears. "I... I allowed my powers to run wild, I allowed my powers to consume me."

...and slowly, her expression turned into a pained although deeply disturbing smile. An insane, sadistic smile...

"And then... I lost control, completely. I couldn't do anything but watch as my powers ran out of control, destroying the entire city. With my own claws..." she looked at her blood-covered paws... "With those claws... I killed the Ancestors, my children, one by one, slowly tearing their scales off them like they did with me. And then, I bathed into destructive flames before unleashing my wrath upon dragonkind, killing all I could find. Before my own eyes, I destroyed everything that was dear to me. I... I lost absolutely everything... and you know what?"

She begun to tremble... and then, her smile distorted as she begun to laugh. A maniacal, insane, loud laughter.

"I... haha... HAHA! ALL I COULD DO WAS LAUGH! HAHAHA! I HAD NOTHING LEFT! NOT EVEN MY SANITY! HAHAHAHA! HAHAHA!!!"

The dragoness arched her body, her insane laughter echoing through the entire Dark Realm, filling Spyro's soul with pure, raw disgust. He couldn't help but step backward, terrorized by this sight...

"Wow... and I thought those ape-things were insane... Goodness..." whispered Sparx, now pale as snow.

"This is... so horrible... so very horrible..." Cynder couldn't believe it...

And then, Vermintrax stopped suddenly and turned to her guests, a maniacal smile replacing her pain.

"But the Ancestors hadn't said their last word. As I destroyed everything, they used the last of their power to cast a powerful curse upon me. I was sealed within this Realm and they called upon the Light so that every ten generations, a purple dragon would be born to fight me. But... you know what? They couldn't even stop me."

She then pointed accusingly at Spyro, her face distorting into a mix of pure rage and amusement.

"I... I used MY power! I called upon ALL of the darkness, all of the sins, all of the evil! I twisted the first purple dragon and drove him to insanity! I turned the dragons' savior into their destroyer, into the Dark Master! And when his soul was totally consumed, I did the same to the next purple dragon... then the next one... and then the next one! Every time a new savior rose, I twisted him into my puppet, into my instrument of vengeance, into the DARK MASTER!" she then spreaded her massive wings, pointing to the skies, bursting into maniacal laughter.

...the truth washed over Spyro like a cold wave.

The Prophecy... was a story of vengeance? It was nothing but the dying wish of fake gods, wishing to bring down a monster they created themselves?... and in the end, the monster turning the Prophecy against dragonkind, using it to fuel its pain and hatred?

How... vile and depressing...

Noticing Spyro's expression, Vermintrax grinned, glaring at him.

"Oh... are you disappointed? Are you ashamed to learn that your gods were monstrous fiends? I understand you..." she whispered in a falsely kind way. "... but fact is, I do not care. The current Dark Master is gone and you, little fool, lack the Light to face me. Your soul is black with the same power as mine... and thus, you shall do quite nicely as my newest puppet!"

And then, at this moment, Spyro came to a decision.

Despite the fear, despite the sadness, despite it all... he raised his head, glaring back at the cursed dragoness.

"No. I refuse to be your puppet." he slowly growled.

The snake-like entity remained silent for a moment... and then, burst into yet another fit of maniacal laughter.

"Hahaha! HAHAHAHA!!! Why do you even bother? You're fighting for the sake of selfish fiends! The Ancestors never did love you! You're nothing but a tool to them! And even then, if they learnt of your Dark Power, they would have rejected you! You fight for no reason! You're insane! HAHAHAHA! YOU HAVE NO CAUSE TO DEFEND! HAHAHAHA!!!"

At this moment, Spyro made a step forward, slamming his right paw into the floor, hard, determination all over his face.

"You are wrong! I fight for the sake of Cynder, Sparx, the Guardians, and everyone else! I do not care about the Prophecy! I am the purple dragon, I wield the power given to me by you and the Ancestors! I will use my power to create a future devoid of fear! A world without the Dark Master, a world without YOU!"

Vermintrax stopped laughing and just stood there, glaring at him from the side like an amused child.

"Oh, really? You wish to fight for a future? What a sick joke. Hear me laugh at you! Look! Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. HA! See? That's how laughable it is! I am the first Ancestor, the pained, tortured Mother! I am the embodiment of all evil! You think your miserable little power is a match for my wrath? PAH! Without Light, you cannot possibly face me!"

Spyro ignored her insults. He was not scared, not anymore.

"Vermintrax... I feel pity for you. It was truly a horrible fate that you suffered. I will give you peace. I will free you from this cursed fate. For the sake of all beings!"

He then turned to Cynder and Sparx. Sparx crossed his arms, grinning while Cynder nodded.

"For the sake of all those who fell... and all those who will live afterward..." added Cynder.

Sparx's grin widened. His grin was nervous, hiding the extreme fear he was feeling... yet, despite his trembling body, he was every bit as determined as Spyro and Cynder. "Hey! We made it to the ultimate evil, right? Personally, I'm scared out of my wits. I... I think that I'm experiencing true, raw terror, you know! Still, I think I'll wait until we've won before fainting."

He turned toward Vermintrax and flew to Spyro's side.

"Phew! Yeah! Let's do this! Although the dragon-o-fright will probably crush us in an instant, I think we do have a tiny chance! Yeah! I'm right by you, Spyro buddy!"

Spyro smiled sweetly. It was so strange. He felt... touched. He slowly nodded to both of his friends...

"Thank you..."

SLAM!

SLAM!

All three were startled at the entire tower shook, Vermintrax slamming her fist into the tower's roof twice. Although she still had her childish smile, her hatred and anger oozed out of her deformed eyes.

"Knock knock! I'm still here! Angered I am, now! Time's over, children! Now, mommy is gonna show you a trick! Now watch! I'll make the three of you... disappear!"

And then, Spyro lowered his head and charged, Sparx flying after him while Cynder flapped her wings, charging as well from the side.

Vermintrax's eyes widened as she opened her eyes, inhaling massive amounts of air as she prepared to launch a breath attack. As she did so, the shattered bones of the dragoness' ribcage pierced through her lungs, many rows of crimson spikes emerging from them. The sight was quite disgusting and was more than enough to make Sparx's face turn pale once again.

Both dragon hatchlings prepared themselves to dodge, anticipating the incoming attack...

...but nothing, absolutely nothing could have prepared for the attack that came their way.

Spyro didn't really know what happened. All he knew was that one second, a sphere of pure red and yellow energy formed in Vermintrax's mouth and the next, every single part of his body was burning, his entire body covered in a seemingly endless inferno that blew on him like a raging hurricane.

Both dragons couldn't even yelp since the heat and the suffering it brought them was so unbearable, sending the both of them flying. The two dragons painfully landed on the side of the tower, their bodies bouncing like ragdolls due to the sheer force of the blazing inferno that had met them.

Although Sparx figured out from that loud sickening crunch and that numb feeling that Spyro must have landed on him, he was still thankful that he was alive. If Spyro hadn't taken most of the blow for him, he wouldn't have survived it. That... was awful. Really. And he thought that Spyro's Fury attacks were brutal...

Slowly dragging himself from under the reptile, Sparx spreaded his wings and looked at them. Well, looks like they weren't broken, at least.

"DARN!" he whined loudly, his entire body making a cracking sound as he rose back, with much difficulty, back into the air. "That was AWFUL! Man, that crazy chick almost torched me, dude!"

...and it was then that worry came to the dragonfly. "Hey! Are you okay, buddy?"

"No Sparx..." the reply came a bit later than he would have liked.

The dragonfly turned to face his adoptive brother... and instantly wished he hadn't.

Spyro... looked absolutely terrible. As he slowly got up, obviously struggling, he got a clear view of his friend and how the attack had affected him. His purple scales had been turned mostly black from the strike and many of them had melted, forming large patches of burnt flesh. His face had taken on a look not unlike Vermintrax's, his snout deformed from the intense heat, his normally sharp, pointy horns made dull from the intense heat.

Likewise, when Cynder got up, she seemed equally badly burnt. Although there were less patches of burnt flesh, her wings had taken the blow quite harshly and were now reduced to a set of bony frames...

The stench was absolutely unbearable. The stench of burnt flesh... but not the usual ape flesh. The smell that assaulted Sparx was the smell of barbecued dragons.

Spyro turned to face Vermintrax. That... how did she do that? How can a dragon, any kind of dragon wield such power? All that dragoness did was inhale a few seconds and then, that inferno... he had never seen such power before. Even the most powerful Fury, even the most intense fiery energy he had felt was nothing compared to what Vermintrax had unleashed. He was still surprised he hadn't been vaporized. The pain... it was so terrible. He had been burnt with such intense flames that there was not even enough water left in his eyes to cry from the pain.

Yet, against all odds, he managed to gather his courage and slowly, rose one paw and then, another, and then finally, managed to bring himself back on his feet. As he regained his composure, his thoughts drifted to Cynder. What about her? Did she resist the attack? Fear suddenly gripped his heart as he feared for the worst. He turned to see her and his eyes widened as his worst fears were almost confirmed.

"C-Cynder?" he asked, horrified by what had happened to her, totally forgetting about his horribly hurting body for a moment.

SLAAAAAM!

The force of the impact caused such a massive earthquake that it literally caused the vaguely humanoid, skeletal shapes that made up the tower to rise, the attack making visible ripples across the roof like a massive rock slamming against the surface of a lake.

Cynder couldn't help but yelp loudly as she was sent flying by the massive ripples. Even Sparx was caught and was, as well, sent flying sky high.

squish!

BAM!

Both the dragoness and the insect slammed back into the floor painfully. They didn't even have the time to react...

But although their bodies were being raked by pain, neither of them paid attention to it.

"S-Spyro!" called Sparx, his face pale as he saw his adoptive brother, so very flat under Vermintrax's massive paw.

Cynder felt... shock... and then, a very unpleasant feeling washed all over her as her face was twisted by a burning feeling on par with the flames that had almost killed her. Despite the intense burns, she managed to leap forward, intend into clawing and biting that arm into pieces!

Then, the arm moved and there was a gigantic wave of black.

SLAUUURCHL!!!

Cynder's scales offered basically no resistance, Vermintrax's massive, deformed, rotten claws slicing through her side like a steel knife through hot butter. The claws dug deep into her body, raking into her very bones deep in her flesh, and then tore through her as they emerged, opening her body wide open in a pretty disgusting way.

The female screamed in pain as she fell on the floor. The attack came so fast... she never was able to see it coming. She forgot all, the pain overwhelming her mind as she grabbed into her side with both paws, trying desperately from keeping her internal organs from slipping out of the gapping hole that used to be the left side of her body, panting heavily as she tried to keep her life from leaving her.

Sparx... couldn't believe what he was seeing. This was just... just...

He turned to Vermintrax. This pure, raw, undiluted rage. There was not even any hint of satisfaction in her eyes, only pure hatred. Her mind was so completely warped that even with after doing all that, she was completely possessed by her frustration and anger.

All fear left Sparx. For some reason, the knowledge that he was going to die and that there was nothing he could do about it calmed him, causing all of his usual imagination for sarcastic comments to dry up. All he could think of was disgust.

But then... as he saw his brother, his frame deformed from the impact, desperately clawing at the floor trying to get up, panting and crying as he tried to survive, he felt... he felt... And then, Cynder, in a similar position, a pool of red soon forming and growing at an alarming rate...

This cannot end like this... this is not fair! He flew in front of his brother's face and slapped him harshly.

"Spyro! COME ON! Get your act together, dude!" he pleaded. "You can't die NOW! Yeah, maybe you could have bought it against the big monkey king but now, at the very last moment, the so-called destined battle? Come on! We're together again, the evil she-dragon is finally truly on our side, and the Dark Master's gone! You can't quit NOW! Get up an--"

SLASH!

"GULP!" Suddenly, it was as if time had frozen.

Why is Spyro looking at him like that? Why... does he feel so cold, so tired? He can't stop shaking and his entire body feels so... so numb, so heavy.

Sparx looked down and then, he realized why.

A massive ice trident had slammed into his back, the central spike covered in green gooey-like liquid, piercing through his chest. The dragonfly felt the blood inside of his mouth.

The strike was lethal. It had struck at exactly the angle and he knew it. Yet, as he hovered there, he also noticed how he was so neatly lined up with Spyro's head...

So in the end, he ended up giving up his life for the cause. In a way, he wanted to cry out, to trash about, to do anything to survive... but all strength had already left him. He reached out to Spyro, his shape already fading from his line of sight...

"It... hurts... brother..." and then, all went dark.

Sparx fell just in front of him, the trident piercing through his chest. The dragon no longer felt pain, he no longer cared about himself. His brother... he lied there...

...and then he saw Cynder, her eyes empty, no longer struggling...

...and he saw Vermintrax. As his vision faded, her eyes continued to glow... no, to burn. To burn with an evil that never slept, that was never satisfied, with an evil that consumed everything, an evil that would forever bring about new Dark Masters through generations. The true source...

They had failed. They were dying, all three of them. Despite destroying the Dark Master, despite Gaul's death, she won in the end. She is at full power, able to recreate the Dark Master whenever she wants, the Dark Ones dominating the Realms, the dragons near-extinct. It was all... in vain.

Sadness gripped him but most of all, anger. Anger at Vermintrax but mostly at himself.

He had been weak!

He doesn't care that Vermintrax is supposed to be the first Ancestor, the goddess from which all dragons were born!

He is the Dragon of Prophecy, the one destined to bring about a new future! He cannot fail! Not here, not now!

Her eyes continued to glow.

She would make him into her puppet and control him. Infuse him with the power of darkness. Make him into the Dark Master...

And then, his eyes widened.

A memory.

Months ago, yes, months ago, he could remember it.

He remembered the power. He remembered the strange power that had been unlocked when he faced Cynder at Convexity. He remembered the great purple light, the corrosive light that pierced through her form. The waves of purple energy.

No, not purple light.

Just a moment ago, Gaul exposed his soul to the Dark Master who gripped into him and made something rise... and for the second time, the power rose.

The Dark Master...

He had thought it had been the power of the Dark Master, his evil Dark Power but now, the truth came to him.

Vermintrax does not create the Dark Masters. She only corrupt and control them.

The power had been inside of him all this time. He now realizes the meaning of her words.

The truth is... this is why the Dark Master had wanted his body. Because they were the same in nature. Because he was a Dark Master just as he was. Because he had the Dark Power.

This was neither the Dark Master▓s nor Vermintrax. It was his darkness, his and his alone.

The power was within him, dormant... all he had to do was reach and use it...

...and thus, he did so.

Vermintrax looked at the roof of the tower, watching the three souls. All of them had limp bodies and empty eyes. It was already over and before it even started! This was not fair! She lusted for blood! SHE NEEDS BLOOD! She felt the overwhelming urge to destroy everything rise. She will destroy, she will tear them apart! Even if they're already dead, even if their souls are already hers! She will reduce their bodies to pieces and crunch their souls and reshape them into faceless screaming shattered beings through suffering!

But then, as she roared in rage, a strange sight caught her attention.

The purple dragon... he was smiling.

Slowly, Spyro clenched his paws. The pain washed all over him but far from making him feel weak, it only fueled his anger which mixed to his blood and shattered bones, in turn fueling the fire within. Something was awakening within him... something powerful, something terribly powerful.

The misshapen form of the purple dragon rose in the air, as if carried by an invisible hand. His left eye had turned dark, fiery red and his right one was now glowing in an unnatural tone of purple.

The entire tower begun to shake as the currents of darkness begun to resonate, small spikes of power rising all around Spyro as his soul resonated, his rage calling to all of the darkness.

And then, in an instant, Spyro felt the darkness overwhelm him and unleashed it, as if it was a Fury attack.

Vermintrax recoiled as she shielded her deformed face from the massive waves of pure darkness. Her rage grew as she felt pain, her arms' scales beginning to decay and fall to dust as a power identical to her own washed all over her with incredible strength.

Then, when the last wave was shot, a frustrating sight awaited her.

Spyro floated above the roof, his body fully regenerated. His scales had turned dark purple and his spikes, wings, and belly, light blue... just like when he had been possessed by the Dark Master. However, his eyes glowed differently and his aura was vastly different. There was no alien feeling, nothing off about Spyro. It was his darkness, his power, to him and him alone.

In the wake of the nightmare, Sparx and Cynder felt the calling of a familiar soul. Their bodies were beyond repair and yet, life clung. In fact, the pain begun to leave them and slowly, their wounds closed and strength returned to them.

Sparx turned to Spyro, confused as to what had happened. For a moment, the familiarity of this situation filled him with worry...

"Spyro?" he called.

But then, Spyro smiled at him and slowly shook his head... and then, Sparx recognized the power. This was not the possession that had taken place at the Mountain of Malefor. No... this was the power he had felt from Spyro back at Convexity, now fully unleashed. Usually, he would have probably made an ironic comment about it for the situation sure was ironic!... but he could think of nothing intelligent to say. All that mattered was that he was alright and that they were now going to kick Vermintrax's tail!

The dragonfly gave Spyro a thumb's up, smiling back.

Cynder looked hesitantly at the purple dragon and at this moment, a feeling of warmth rose within her and pleasant memories flooded her.

She remembered this power... and she remembered feeling it at Convexity. For months, she had been convinced that had been an emanation from the Dark Master, right before the portal closed... but now, she realized what had been the true source of it.

For many months, she had seeked her master back... when he had been at her side, protecting her, loving her all this time.

His power called to her and she nodded, spreading her wings as she lifted herself up to join him. He smiled back, touched. She smiled back, slowly extending a paw toward him, which he touched with his own. They didn't say anything. There was nothing to say.

The three turned to face Vermintrax.

"The time has come." stated Spyro. His friends nodded in agreement.

Vermintrax stared at this sight for a little while, dumbfounded... and then, slowly, her face deformed itself into an expression of pure rage, a loud growl escaping from her decaying throat.

"Speak as you will! You are nothing but a novice! My authority over the darkness is absolute! Prepare yourself for the lesson of your life!... or rather, should I say, of your DEATH!"

The ugly monstrosity reared backward a moment as it prepared itself before opening its mouth, a massive hurricane of flames once again escaping its throat and threatening to fry Spyro and his friends on the spot.

However, this time, they were ready.

The purple dragon gathered all of his strength and mixed it to all of his anger. A moment of doubt rose for a moment...

All of this anger... all of this hatred... was it what caused the Dark Master's insanity? The power that flowed through him was of the same nature. If he allowed the anger to lead him, if he allowed himself to fall to the temptation... then he would be no better than the Dark Master was. He would become just as evil as the monster he is trying to defeat.

Sparx and Cynder floated at his sides, not a hint of fear in their eyes.

They trusted him... even after the revelation that he was himself a Dark Master, just as the evil they had banished was, they continued to trust him. In fact, they had not hesitated one second, accepting his new nature as if it was normal.

Although his power is the same, he is vastly different. The Dark Master was not evil because of the power that coursed him. He was evil because he forgot why one uses power. He became selfish and became ready to sacrifice everything for just his desires without consideration of the consequences.

He is not like that. His power shall be used for his friends, for everyone, for the future.

All of the anger... he felt himself burning, rage coursing his veins. The darkness resonated within him, demanding blood, demanding to be released, demanding destruction.

He did not resist it. He wishes for destruction to come. May it come! May it enshroud this vile wave of fire and make it disappear!

In an instant, Spyro's eyes glowed as he landed and opened his mouth, allowing the darkness to taint his elemental powers. At this moment, his mouth seemed to explode, massive amounts of large destructive flames forming a large screen in front of him, a constant stream of fiery doom.

The two blasts met each others and in an instant, time seemed to freeze...

Vermintrax narrowed her eyes as she saw her attack stopping. He wanted to play that game? SO BE IT!

The abomination begun to blow harder, more fire coming out of her mouth, more destruction, more anger flowing into it.

The purple dragon felt it and he saw it too. He was not going to lose! He went deep into his own mind and took out all of his anger, strengthening his own power, the screen of flames growing thicker.

"That's the strangest game of tug-o-war I've ever seen..." commented Sparx as Vermintrax and Spyro became locked into some kind of struggle, the two trying to overpower each others.

"We've got to help him!" declared Cynder, stepping forward. She was not going to just sit there and bask in his power, parasiting it! She cared for him, too! She will use her power!

Sparx crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as Cynder placed herself just at Spyro's side and spreaded her wings, taking a deep breath as she prepared herself.

Deep within, she could feel it. A darker part of herself, a twisted part born out of the immense amounts of darkness that had coursed her veins. Many months, she had rejected this part, afraid that it would consume, hoping it would go away.

But it was a part of herself, may she like it or not. Just as Spyro has dark power, so does she. She cannot deny who she is even if she has painful memories. She cannot allow the fear to forever control her. It is not the Dark Master's power, not anymore. It is her own power, her own darkness. Just as Spyro could gain control over it, so will she.

For a moment, fear and doubt rose within Sparx as slowly, the gold and silver bracelets reappeared on her ankles and wrists along with a spiked collar on her neck. He could see her eyes changing color, turning grey. Cynder... she isn't going to return to that huge, scary form, is she?

Spyro caught a glimpse of Cynder. For a moment, a hint of fear rose. This power... he recognized it and it caused painful memories and terror to rise back in his mind. He then saw the bracelets, the collar, the eyes he had tried for so many months to forget... yet, he did not see the shape he had feared.

Cynder... he could feel the darkness in her too yet, he also felt her spirit and he also noticed that she hadn't transformed and wouldn't transform.

For a moment, he felt his own power and her own touching each others. Although there was no actual physical contact, it still brought a strange, warm feeling to him just as it did to her and then, he recognized that evil-looking, taunting smirk... yet, it wasn't creepy anymore nor was it taunting. It was just a confident, sly grin. A wordless way to indeed confirm that she is at his side and that together, they will win. They will not lose. Vermintrax is wrong.

Then, at this moment, Cynder reared back and let out a familiar yet different roar, the same as she used to let out when she was transformed yet, now higher-pitched due to her being in her true form.

Massive black red flames mixed to Spyro's yellow flames and the screen grew stronger, much stronger. For a moment, the flames almost reached Vermintrax and for a moment, all three souls really thought that they were winning...

...but then, Vermintrax let out a gigantic roar filled with pure anger and nearly tripled the strength of her stream.

In an instant, the stream pushed against the screen and once again threatened the three.

"Man! That sucks! How much power do that chick got to spare?!?" said Sparx to no one in particular.

This was bad, real bad! Spyro is losing, again, even with Cynder's help! In a way, it's a bit surprising, considering. After all, Spyro is breathing the largest flames he ever saw him breathe, a stream even larger than his Fire Fury at full power and at a constant rate, too! Cynder, too, was impressive. That equally gigantic red stream was even more impressive than what she used to breathe at them as a maybe-semi-possessed giant evil dragoness!... and yet, they're losing. That Vermintrax chick sure isn't a joke!

"Dude! There must be SOMETHING I can do here?!?" he uttered, frustration rising. Sure, being unable to fight didn't bother him much usually since he was scared... but now was not the case! He was ready, he wasn't afraid! He wanted to kick that giant snake thingy's booty and he wanted to do it NOW! There must be some kind of way he can help...

He rose up and got closer to the streams. Although Spyro shot glare at him, obviously disapproving, he was ultimately too busy keeping the inferno at bay to prevent Sparx from getting closer.

Man! If he only he could, you know, do something! Maybe not spit out magic out of his mouth but, you know, anything! Maybe... you know... punching that chick in the face and do any damage or maybe... oh and aw nuts!

Without noticing it, Sparx swiped at the air... and his hand passed through the stream.

Sparx's eyes widened and for a moment, he thought he was gonna be fried but then, there was a strange sound, like a piece of metal clinging against a bell and then, he stood there, surprised.

That... felt so very weird. For a moment, he felt... he felt...

He turned to Spyro and Cynder for a moment and then, he didn't know why but he just felt like he knew what he had to do.

He flew to Spyro, placing himself in front of him, just above his snout...

"I think... I may have some kind of power after all, dude!" he exclaimed, smiling... and as he said it, he remembered.

The final battle against Cynder back at Convexity, once again. He hadn't paid attention to it but... that final Fury attack he had unleashed... it now came back to him. Spyro had gathered his power in a sphere before launching the attack... and at this moment, it's then that he remembered what was so peculiar about it.

Spyro had not gathered the power at a random point in space. He had gathered it inside of him before using him as a catalyst, amplifying the attack.

It hadn't been just Spyro's attack. It had been THEIR attack.

Despite being his adoptive brother, he was connected to Spyro in a way that went deeper than mere family adoption... and at this moment, Sparx realized something.

Sparx smirked and decided to see if he could take advantage of this...

And without any warning, the dragonfly dived straight into the middle of the hatchlings' attacks, at the very point where the two streams met and merged.

For a moment, the two's eyes widened. Had Sparx went insane?!? He was going to kill himself!

But rather than causing Sparx to be fried, the gesture had a strange effect.

In an instant, there was a loud sound and Sparx seemingly exploded with power, a large sphere of light surrounding him as the two streams went through him and were then expelled from his hands, now taking on a white and black screen of flames that was nearly ten times the strength of the old screen.

Vermintrax was taken totally by surprise. The massive screen easily overwhelmed her own stream and almost reached her face.

NO NO NO! This won't do! THIS WON'T DO!

The tortured dragoness pain and rage grew further and her flames turned dark purple, her eyes flashing bright red.

The overwhelming stream of dark flames pushed the three's combined power back again.

But they won't lose! They just won't! But neither will Vermintrax.

It was unknown how long Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx kept playing tug-o-war with Vermintrax in such a way but eventually, Spyro and Cynder begun to run out of breath, their lungs screaming for air while Sparx, him, felt that all of this power going through him was beginning to have ill effects.

And then, almost simultaneously, everyone stopped their attacks... although Vermintrax had lasted a fraction of a second more, a small part of her flames washing all over the three young souls and promptly slamming them into the ground.

Fortunately, no one was really injured. Spyro slammed his paws into the floor, jumping back into position while Cynder flapped her wings to do the same, Sparx being the last to get up.

"What does it take to bring that stupid thing down?!?" whined Sparx.

The purple dragon gritted his teeth. This was bad, really bad...

"How annoying... but even your combined strength cannot defeat me! Without the power of Light, I cannot be defeated!" claimed high and loud the ancient dragoness.

Again with the taunts! This begun to piss off Cynder not just a little. She swung her tail around, slamming its can opener-shaped blade into the floor. That situation was beginning to really get on her nerves!

"We'll see about this! Spyro! From the left!" she called as she charged forward, intent on tearing the remaining half of that monster's face off its skull!

Sparx flew at Spyro's side as he ran to the side of the tower, charging toward Vermintrax while the black dragoness charged from the other side.

Seeing this, the giant snake-like abomination roared once again and slammed her paw into the tower with all of her strength, once again causing a massive earthquake that almost destroyed the roof, sending visible ripples through it.

But this time, they had been ready. Spyro dashed out of the way at a blinding speed and then, kicked into the floor as he sent himself soaring high above the ripples, Cynder doing the same while Sparx was already high above the danger by the time Vermintrax's deformed paw collided with the floor.

Before the evil dragoness could even do any other movement, a black reptile had placed herself in front of her face. Cynder begun to flap her wings wildly as she spun quickly, slamming her claws into Vermintrax's face before biting her, plunging her sharp teeth deep into the flesh near her snout.

The dragoness roared in pain and grabbed into the annoying black pest in an attempt to take her off her face... but Cynder had planned this. As she grabbed into Cynder, the black dragoness swung her body and whipped the abomination in the face, plunging the can opener-shaped blade at the end of her tail deep into her flesh. Thus, as Vermintrax thrown Cynder back into the tower, it also caused her tail blade to dig deep into the monster's face. Thus, Cynder brought a big chunk of flesh of Vermintrax's face with her as Vermintrax thrown her.

SLAM!

Cynder lost her breath because of the violence of the impact, landing on her left shoulder. That... didn't feel good but she paid little attention to it. As she bounced off the floor, she spun in mid-air, landing back on her feet and swinging the big chunk of rotten flesh off her tail.

With all of that, Vermintrax had forgotten about Spyro... and saw Sparx waving at her and making rude gestures at her. How dare he...

She couldn't think of anything else that it was Spyro's turn to strike her. The purple dragon moved at a blinding speed, using his power to amplify his speed greatly, slamming his claws into her chest with incredible power. His claws, as tiny as they were, took massive chunks out of her chest with each impact, progressively revealing her shattered rib cage under and her decayed although still beating heart within. Then, just as Spyro was about to plunge his right paw into it, Vermintrax grabbed into him and thrown him at Cynder with shocking strength.

BAM!

Cynder barely managed to jump out of the way as Spyro slid across the roof of the tower, only stopping at the very edge. In a way, that had been too close...

Sparx flew back to Spyro's side, worried for a moment. But then, his smile returned as the purple dragon slowly got up once again.

Vermintrax was burning with rage. Her face was literally deformed with anger, her already twisted traits no longer anything near recognizable anymore.

Yet, she did not throw a tantrum. She did not have any anger on her face.

"So... you are not weak." she said, obviously impressed.

"Wow! Took ya long enough!" replied the dragonfly, annoyed that it took that thing so long to figure it out. Geez! Wasn't it obvious? Did she really expect them to be weak?

Vermintrax ignored Sparx and continued on. "I guess that it is now time. I will show you why you can't win. Since you are not weak, it is no use in playing around anymore. I will now use my full power."

And then, Vermintrax, seemingly totally calmed down, just stood there, a suspicious grin on her face.

Spyro slowly stepped forward until he was near the abomination, Cynder and Sparx at his sides...

"I got a bad feeling about this..." said the purple dragon more to himself than anything else. This couldn't be good. They could barely keep up with her and she was playing around? Just how much more powerful can this thing prove itself to be?

The dragoness and the insect remained silent, neither sure of what to say or think.

And then, at this moment, a familiar sound...

"Hey, dudes! Is it me or does this sound like a..." and then, Sparx's eyes widened, pure terror coming to him. "... a... a Fury attack?"

And then, they saw it. A HUGE funnel of power gathering around Vermintrax's body. Not only that but it seemed as if entire Dark Realm had twisted itself, MASSIVE streams of dark power now being channeled toward the giant dragoness body.

The three's eyes widened and then...

BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

None of three could never even think of turning around and beginning to run as the darkness erupted out of Vermintrax's body.

And then, at this moment, Spyro felt as if he had been slammed into a wall, one that burnt his body. The amount of power that coursed through him and sent him flying was just so incredible that he didn't even feel any pain, his soul totally overwhelmed.

All that he knew is that he, Cynder, and Sparx were struck with such force that within a second, they had been carried by the wave of pure black off the tower's roof.

The Dark Realm became a confusing mess of screaming faces and black rivers flying all around them and into them, forming what could be summarized to a chaotic storm of pure darkness. The bone-like clouds were gone, the horizon had disappeared, and the infernal flames no longer were. Yet, in the darkness, he could see the tower as it was instantly vaporized by the strength of the explosion. Then, there was Vermintrax, her frame becoming smaller and smaller as they were sent flying across kilometers.

This attack... was overwhelming beyond imagination. He couldn't even think of anything about it. It was just so incredible.

He closed his eyes, sighing one last time as he felt his scales turned into dust, his body being vaporized. There was no way he was going to survive this and he knew it...

* * *

After some time, he didn't know how long, Spyro slowly stretched his body and then, yawned loudly.

Opening his eyes, he wondered for a moment if it had all been just a nightmare...

But then, at this moment, several things registered inside of his brain.

First was incredible, absolutely unbearable pain. His scales had turned black and were half-melted, revealing black, vulnerable, scorched flesh underneath. The smell, he wasn't even going to try and understand how such a stench could exist. Still, this brought incredible relief to him for it meant he was, against all odds, alive.

The other thing was that he was now lying down on some kind of rocky platform that stretched almost in an infinite way. Yet, they knew they weren't in the flames as he could feel the liquid, strange atmosphere of the Dark Realm invade the gaps in his scales and bringing pain to his shivering, damaged body.

In the skies, a snake-like dragon that was so ridiculously long that its body circled several times the platform, no matter how gigantic it was.

Vermintrax... she had seemed gigantic already when at the tower but here, he realized just how massive she was. Her body was probably long enough to form a circle around the largest continent of the Dragon Land Realm five times. It was how humongous she was.

The familiar buzzing came to him.

Sparx, although now colored grey and black from the attack, seemed to be in a good shape... relatively.

"What was THAT?!?" he asked, obviously referring to the attack. The purple dragon couldn't help but shake his head.

"Absolutely no idea. Her Fury attack, I guess..."

The dragonfly slapped his forehead, shaking his head. "Oh great! How are we going to beat THAT? I mean... you saw the freakin' thing? For a second, I thought we were a goner!"

Then, a slow, annoyed feminine groan. Cynder, equally in a bad shape, slowly got up, shaking her head. The bracelets and collar were now gone, showing that she was back to normal. It was also at this moment that Spyro realized he was also back to normal, his worry resurfacing now that the rage was gone.

"Cynder? Are you alright?" the female turned to him and then nodded weakly.

"Yeah, I think. Not feeling too good... but I don't have anything broken. And you?"

"Same..." replied the purple dragon.

Then, a loud roar echoed through the air.

...and they saw Vermintrax, once again in front of them, eyes still glowing in that weird red light.

"It is useless. It's all over." she said in a mocking way, seemingly amused by the three's states.

Spyro didn't say anything. He just sat there. He had unleashed his full power... but what could he do against a goddess? As powerful as he was, he was powerless before this being...

Besides, Cynder and Sparx, they were tired too. What can they do?

He looked at his paws. He could no longer feel the power now. Had it vanished? Did he use up all of it? He had made tremendous efforts at the tower, unleashing enough power for Vermintrax, a goddess, to be forced to use her full power. An admirable feat... but foolish in the end. They cannot overpower a being as powerful as Vermintrax.

But then, at this moment, he realized something and smiled.

Maybe his actions had not been in vain.

The purple dragon got up despite the pain, despite his injured body, and stood proudly. He will fight to the very end even if it costs him his life. Besides... it wouldn't be the first time he would defeat a foe much stronger than he was. In a way, he had truly been foolish. But he won't repeat that mistake.

"We can't give up now! We have to try!" he said, calling to the others.

"Yeah, admirable initiative chief!... but we can't even do anything to it! What are we going to do?" replied Sparx, Cynder looking down.

But then, the purple dragon noticed one detail... he smirked and motioned to Vermintrax's heart... and this moment, hope returned. Their efforts had not been in vain. Sparx grinned anew and Cynder felt her courage return as well. They had a chance. They could win this fight.

"It's not over until your soul had been brought to rest, Vermintrax!" yelled the purple dragon. He was strong. He was not going to let it end this way.

And at this moment, frustration rose within Vermintrax's soul. "What? You STILL resist? Isn't it obvious that you cannot win, that resistance is futile? You are stupid! You are all too tired to grasp into the darkness again! You think you stand a chance? Laughable! Ridiculous! Ludicrous! S-T-U-P-I-D!"

And at this moment, the fight resumed.

Despite the pain, the three felt perfectly apt to keep on fighting and as such, when Vermintrax charged forward and attempted to collide into the three, she struck only thin air, Spyro dodging to the left, Cynder and Sparx to the right.

And then, as she charged, her head disappearing into the clouds way above and her body forming a wall on the ground, the three had an idea. Sparx clung to Cynder's right horn and then, both hatchlings jumped on Vermintrax's decayed frame and plunged their claws into it, allowing her frame to carry them into the skies...

The two dragons held on for dear life, Sparx doing the same but clinging to Cynder instead.

Left right left right up down. It was like a giant roller-coaster ride except with no protection. Eventually, the terrible acceleration ended and silence and calm came. A brief moment of silence in the chaos...

The two climbed on top of the dragoness body.

Once on top, Spyro could finally regain his balance after being thrown about. Sparx slowly stopped clinging to Cynder, noticing that Vermintrax had slowed down enough for him to keep up. Slowly, while the dragons were still dazed, he took the opportunity to look down.

"Whoa. Quite a long way down." he commented. Spyro raised an eyebrow and approached the edge of the rotten body. Looking down, his eyes widened as well.

"Wow! You weren't joking! It IS a long way down!" hearing this, Cynder came to his side and looked down as well.

"Well, seems like we're high in the Dark Realm's skies now..." commented the female calmly. In a way, how she managed to be so calm troubled the purple dragon but still... there was no time to waste.

And then, suddenly, Vermintrax stopped moving. In a way, this pleased Sparx, as he no longer had to constantly fly to keep up with his adoptive brother... but on another hand, this was mighty suspicious...

And then, at this moment, Vermintrax turned to face the three and brought her upper body closer, glaring at them as she once again placed herself in range for her to strike them with her claws.

"Oh dear... She doesn't look happy!" commented Sparx.

It was true, the ancient dragoness was fulminating, a loud growl escaping her throat.

"How DARE you?!? I'm not some kind of staircase! You impertinent fools!" in a way, Sparx was tempted to make a crack but well, he was a bit too scared to do that. So, he just hovered there.

Ignoring Vermintrax's rage, the two dragon hatchlings stepped forward, determination all over their faces. They turned to each others and then, nodded at each others.

"Let's finish this." said the purple dragon. "Yeah." replied the dragoness before turning to Vermintrax.

Then, Vermintrax roared again as the two hatchlings charged forward. The dragonfly rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Oh man! I can't watch this..."

Vermintrax's eyes narrowed as she charged with absolutely no regard for her safety, mouth wide open, intend on munching on them like two gummies.

Strangely enough, even without the power, Spyro felt confident and although he and Cynder barely dodged in time, sending themselves off Vermintrax by flapping their wings once in a wide, powerful motion, they still grinned to each others, exchanging a look before carrying on.

Sparx had put some distance between himself and the demented dragoness and watched, worried to no end.

Her jaws snapping on thin air, Vermintrax turned around...

SLAM!

"GWIIIYAAAAAAARG!" the abomination screamed at the top of her lungs as unbearable pain raked through her whole body.

Spyro and Cynder had hovered back to Vermintrax's body and from there, Spyro had kicked into the snake-like dragoness body, charging straight into Vermintrax's heart as she turned around. He headbutted into the soft, fragile organ with all of his strength, actually inflicting pain and damage upon the monstrous monster.

Bouncing off the heart due to the strength of the impact, Spyro spun in the air and then, landed gracefully on his feet at the end of his backflip as Vermintrax gripped her exposed heart, a loud, twisted whine escaping her throat.

"Why... why you little..." the hatchlings grinned as the massive dragoness scolded them.

Those grins... how dare they! She will wipe those smiles off their faces! In fact, she will erase those faces entirely!

Channeling the pain into her heart, she turned all of it into pure hatred and prepared herself to wipe out those bugs out of existence.

And then, at this moment, Spyro noticed it. The thin stream of black energy that was just to his left...

"S-S-Spyro!" called Cynder, panic rising in her voice.

"Oh no... not that... please not that..." whispered the purple dragon to himself as he saw the large streams of dark energy coming from every direction, all concentrating into Vermintrax's heart.

"Wha-WHAT?!? Doesn't people need to recover BEFORE launching a second Fury attack?!?" Sparx summarized the confusion and fear that the two were feeling very well.

For a moment, his heart stopped. They were already in a bad shape. If Vermintrax launched another Fury attack... NO! It won't end this way!

Gritting his teeth, he turned to Cynder and motioned to her. The black dragoness nodded and then, they both kicked into the snake-like frame of Vermintrax, launching themselves toward her heart with all of the speed they could muster. They cannot lose! Not now! Not so close to victory! All they have to do is strike that heart once more...

BOOOOOOOM!

The purple dragon roared in rage, protesting loudly against this twist of fate.

"SPYRO!" a feminine voice and a masculine one.

The purple dragon did not listen to them. He has to strike her heart and defeat her at all cost. Even if he has to dive into her Fury, even if... even if...

...even if he must pay the ultimate price for it...

He closed his eyes as he charged into the target, the dark power engulfing him...

* * *

Two Fury attacks in a row. What was his chance of survival?

The pain had all but left him and everything felt so dark. Was he going to... to... to... to die?

Fear... and then, pain. Pain through all of his body... and a wet feeling.

Even though he can't see, he feels that his wings are broken... and so are all of his limbs. He couldn't feel any extremities and what little of his limbs and wings he could feel, he felt them in awkward, unnatural angles, unable to move them.

So cold... yet so warm. He is bathing in a warm liquid, his blood he guessed. He felt so... so naked, so cold. He guessed that was because most of his scales were gone. And then, that burning feeling... like boiling oil all over his body. Melted scales, he guessed.

The injuries he had received... he was still alive but he wouldn't live long. But strangely enough, unlike most times when he came close, there was no determination nor acceptance of whatever was to come. All that there was within his heart was pain and fear.

"Spyro..." Cynder's voice... so distant yet so close. He wanted to call for help, to beg her to help him but all that came out of his twisted, barely recognizable form was a weak whimper.

"Oh dear... he's still alive? Guh... I feel... sick..." Sparx's voice came as a whisper in the howling winds of the Dark Realm as well. He guessed he must look horrible and considering he had his eyes wide open and yet, saw nothing, he guessed that something must have happened to them as well.

He wanted to scream, to cry, to trash about, to do anything... even just to help forget the pain but all that he could do was lie there and whimper in the most pathetic way.

"How sad. The three of you, already half dead, bodies mangled, hope crushed. Such a pathetic sight, I'm so touched. I think I'm going to cry..." why? Why does she insist like that? Didn't she win already? If this is truly his fate, if he cannot change nor escape it anymore... why prolong his agony? This was ridiculous to him...

He felt as if there were movements in the air, sounds... but none of them ever reached him. All he could hear was silence and already, the pain was leaving him.

Everything felt so calm, so peaceful. He didn't feel cold nor warm anymore. He had stopped shivering. He could feel the spark leaving him, the life no longer able to be sustained by his mangled, ruined body.

Was it the end? Is he... truly going to die?

Sparx, Cynder... he couldn't let them down. He couldn't die.

But what can he do? He has been completely defeated. There is no more that he can do... no more.

As death drawn near, his brain begun to recollect memories. Yet, none of them interested him. He didn't want to see his life again. He wanted to continue it. He wanted to win, to triumph over the final foe and to bring a new future, not to become a victim, a casualty, a statistic of history.

But then, his memory froze on a single moment.

Yes, his true power had been unleashed for the first time at Convexity during the battle against Cynder... but what had caused it? Was it simply stress?

...no.

He remembered... how Cynder had rose in the air, how the power had gathered.

He remembered the horrific pain, his scales melting, his own scream as the intense heat tore through his frame, his flesh burning, turning black from the burning flames.

He had thought he would die. He had felt himself being turned to ashes. In an instant, Cynder had killed him and without any effort. The whole fight had been a joke actually, playing around with him...

But he did not die.

Even when everything turned to black, he did not give up.

In the depths of the void, he found his true power and it answered him.

He did not use up all of his power back at the tower. He still has some energy left. If he uses it now... maybe he can live on. He doubted it would be sufficient to defeat Vermintrax but as long as he lives, as long as there is life in his veins, he won't give up and he will have a chance.

He gripped into the void, into the darkness. The last of his leaking life gripped into the very darkness that was now swallowing it. For a moment, nothing happened... but then, a small, tiny fragment of power resonated within him.

He still has power left. He will survive even this.

And then, before the gazes of his friends, Spyro once again rose and in an instant, screamed one last time as he unleashed the last of his gathered power.

That second explosion of dark power was not even near the power of the first one, back at the tower, but its power still washed all over the dragoness and dragonfly.

In an instant, Spyro's frame reformed and the wounds of his friends once again closed.

Spyro gasped loudly as he opened his eyes, life slamming into his comatose mind like a sledgehammer. He also collapsed again and gripped his heart, barely able to stand...

...and well, although he survived, he found out that unfortunately, he had, indeed, used up all of his power... just like his friends.

Totally exhausted, the two dragon hatchlings and the dragonfly collapsed and fell down on the rocky platform, unable to get up, the three of them panting, unable to stand up.

"Well, that is a surprise. Unfortunately, that was nothing but a worthless gesture. Your power has been exhausted. Now, nothing can prevent me from destroying all of you!" remarked the monster, smirking evilly, a mix of pure rage and amusement deforming her ugly face.

Really? He doesn't think so! Spyro gathered all of his strength and gripped the ground with his front paws before pulling himself up.

But just as he managed to get up, he felt so dead tired and his limbs were so heavy, so deathly heavy. He groaned loudly, not wishing to give in but he was just too tired and he fell down on his stomach, feeling so very dizzy.

"Hahahaha... hahahaa... look at that! What's the matter, children? Too tired? Don't worry! I'll put you all to sleep!" mocked the dragoness, raising her twisted right paw high in the air, preparing to crush Spyro once and for all.

Oh no! He did not escape death just to be squashed like that! He can't die now! He can't...

SWIIIIISCHLL!

Out of seemingly nowhere, a giant beam of pure white light pierced right through Vermintrax's heart, stopping her in the middle of her tracks.

But... where did this attack come from?!? This was definitely not his doing and looking to Cynder and Sparx, they were every bit as confused and surprised as he was.

The ancient dragoness begun to shake out of control as the white energy coursing her veins, the pain rising at an incredible rate and soon paralyzing her completely.

"Wh-what?" she whispered. "L... light?!?"

And then, a second beam of pure light was shot and slammed straight into the twisted abomination's heart. This time, it had a much more significant effect. Vermintrax gripped her heart, recoiling violently as she screamed at the top of her lungs, the white energy shooting straight out of her mouth and orbits, vaporizing her eyes in the process.

The dragoness didn't even have the time to recover that already, a third beam was shot. That last one passed right through her heart.

Vermintrax stopped right there as she begun to change color, the energy soon consuming her heart. The ancient dragoness screamed one last time, her entire frame pierced from every side as the energy shot out of her body from nearly every spot, sending burnt flesh pieces flying everywhere.

Spyro just stood there, eyes widened, as Vermintrax died, the energy destroying her inside out.

And then, after several minutes, Vermintrax's agony came to an end, the last of her flesh vaporized by the light.

BOOOOOOOOM!

Spyro shielded his eyes as the last of the energy was violently expelled, the strength of the winds caused by the explosion almost sending him flying.

When he slowly looked back at Vermintrax, she was now nothing but a floating skeleton... and then, slowly, one by one, her bones begun to fall down, as if the dark force that had kept it in the air was now gone, the massive skull landing just in front of Spyro before the whole skeleton turned to dust and disappeared.

Vermintrax had been defeated...

...but how?

They had not dealt the finishing blow...

Footsteps... and slowly, Spyro saw a familiar figure...

"At long last, Vermintrax has been punished for her crimes! Never again shall she meddle with the Realms!" this voice... and this frame...

Astrial turned to face the three, a serious expression on his face.

"Well well well. It seems like you were right. You were not servants of the Dark Master. Still, you are unworthy and weak. Only I could defeat Vermintrax!"

What? They do almost all of the work and that ungrateful fool dare to say that?!? Cynder somehow found the strength and managed to get up. She was so enraged! How dare he!

Likewise, Sparx had risen and hovered there, hands on his hips, obviously upset. "Hey! Where's our thank you? I mean, we did all of the work, dude! What did you do, huh? HUH? You just jumped in at the last second and landed the finishing blow. Big deal!"

Astrial laughed. It was so strange... although Spyro always knew that the so-called "true" Dragon of Prophecy was a jerk, he had never noticed how cold, how cruel he truly sounded. The way he laughed, the way he spoke... it was as if he didn't care about anyone or anything, not even himself.

"Hahaha! What a ridiculous claim! I am the Dragon of Prophecy, the wielder of pure, holy Light! Vermintrax was the nexus of all darkness, the embodiment of evil! She cannot be defeated by her own power! Your efforts did nothing! I, alone, defeated the traitor who betrayed the Ancestors!"

Slowly, Spyro managed to gather the strength to stand as well.

"Oh quit it! Besides, how can you still be alive? I thought those ugly ape guys would overwhelm you!" snapped Sparx, clearly annoyed by Astrial's arrogance.

"Hahaha! What a joke! As if such weak beings would have been able to harm me let alone kill me! They did nothing but slow me down hence why I arrived after you did! Truly, it's nothing important! You are weak!"

Spyro was clearly annoyed, like everyone else, by Astrial's attitude and arrogance but then, as he looked at Astrial... he slowly realized something and then, turned to Cynder and Sparx, his face beaming with happiness.

Seeing this, the dragonfly raised an eyebrow and poked Cynder's head a bit until she turned to face Spyro too.

"Hey! What's the deal, bro? Why are you so happy? I mean, geez! Your expression is about the same as when you first learned to fly!... well, sorta, considering you never actually managed to fly correctly!"

"Sparx... Cynder..." he begun, slowly approaching them and then stopping just in front of the two. "Vermintrax... she's gone."

"And...?" added Sparx, not seeing where this was going.

Spyro's smile widened. "The tortured soul that was the source of all evil, the one that created and revived the Dark Master all the time... it's gone."

And then, at this moment, the truth registered. Instantly, the annoyance and confusion vanished as both of them soon gained expressions not unlike Spyro's. Who cares about Astrial being a jerk? Their journey is finally over! They are victorious! They shown the bad guys who's boss!

"Y-you mean that..." Spyro nodded as Sparx asked it and then, he made a backflip in mid-air, striking a pause. "WOOHOO! We shown them, dude!"

He then crossed his arms, regaining slightly his composure. "Heh! Guess that we won't have to go to anywhere else dangerous anymore. It's all over, dude! You won't become the next Dark Master, ol' Spyro!"

Spyro stared at Cynder. She was looking down...

He slowly approached and placed his right paw under her mouth before pushing on it weakly, making her look into his eyes.

"It's over, Cynder. Him and all of his power is now truly gone. You are free..."

Cynder had tears in her eyes. She felt so... so happy.

"Spyro... I..." the purple dragon smiled sweetly and slowly nodded. In a way, he already knew what she was going to say...

And then, Cynder brought herself closer, closing her eyes, placing herself just at Spyro's side, rubbing her neck against his own, her left wing slowly rubbing against his own, her tail intertwining with his own, the female now hugging the male the best as she could do, as a quadruped.

For a moment, Spyro was surprised... but he quickly chased away his surprise, smiling anew. He returned the favor, hugging her back...

Sparx grinned as he hovered in front of the two. Spyro blinked a few times as the dragonfly hovered there, arms crossed.

"Well... what are you waiting for, big guy? Go ahead... I know you two want to. I won't say anything this time..."

The dragonfly slowly turned his back as Cynder opened her eyes, staring into his own...

"Cynder... I know we're a bit too young for this but..." begun the purple dragon, a blush coming to his face as nervosity rose for some reason he ignored. But the female quickly brought her paw to his snout, interrupting him.

"There's nothing to say, Spyro..." she whispered.

...and then, both of them closed their eyes and brought themselves closer.

The male opened his mouth and slowly, placed it against the female's. Eyes closed, the two dragons kissed, finally fully accepting the feelings that they felt for each others. Despite the past, despite the age, despite the scary location... Vermintrax is now gone. A new future awaits them.

Then, slowly, as the two broke the kiss, Sparx turned back to them.

"Aaaaaw! How cute! So! When am I gonna be an uncle? I mean, considering how much of a perrrfect match you two are, I'm gonna assume you'll soon make a tons of annoying, naked 'lil hatchlings, isn't it?" mocked the dragonfly.

Cynder brought her paw to her mouth, giggling just as Spyro couldn't help but suppress a laugh as well.

"Slow down, Sparx! We didn't reach puberty yet, you know!" he replied.

"Oh yeah. That." said Sparx, hovering back a bit.

Well, it looks like it comes to a happy ending after all. All they have to do is come back home. Spyro already wondered what Ignitus will say when...

...huh?

Cynder noticed Spyro's expression and became worried. Why was he looking like that?

"What's wrong, Spyro?" she asked, becoming worried as well. Seeing no answer, she slowly moved herself off him and turned to see what was making Spyro so troubled.

Astrial stood there, gritting his teeth, looking down.

"Man! Why is he like that? Didn't we, like, win and all?" asked Sparx, wondering why the heck was Astrial so gloomy during such a moment.

"Dunno. Let's ask him." replied the purple dragon, slowly stepping forward. "Astrial!"

The other purple dragon turned to face Spyro.

"What's the matter? Is something wrong?" asked Spyro.

Astrial looked at both the purple dragon and the black dragoness. His gaze spoke of pure disgust and contempt and made a shiver run down all three souls' spines.

And then, after a long moment, Astrial spoke up.

"Spyro... you are the Imposter. Although you are not evil, the darkness courses your veins. You were born a purple dragon due to a great paradox, a great mistake. Born from the same kind of union that brought about the first Dark Master...■ began Astrial.

He then paused, as if remembering something...

"King Gaul... he was an evil genius. He brought the dragons to their knees. Even before the decisive attack on the Dragon Temple, the dragons had lost so many members that they had to... cut corners." his face deformed in a weird frown as he said the last few words.

"Guardians are usually chosen only from pure bloodlines, dragons who were born from past Guardians and were raised to uphold the traditions... but... with the Dark Ones gaining ground, no candidates for the fire and electricity Guardian positions remained... so they chose two commoners who had natural talents equivalent to pure-blooded dragons."

Ignitus... but still, why was this bothering Astrial? And why now?

"Ignitus... didn't have faith as the others had and well, one law among Guardians is that as long as a Guardian will have its role, he or she is forbidden from having children. This is an important law that must never be broken. But... near the end of the war, twelve years ago or so, Ignitus fell for a great dragoness warrior..."

What? Guardians can't have children and Ignitus had a child? How is that related?

"Somehow, the egg was conceived at the exact same moment as the purple dragon egg was supposed to be infused inside of the female dragon meant to lay the egg... and as the dragoness that Ignitus loved was the same dragoness who was meant to lay the purple dragon egg..."

...and then, the truth registered.

"It caused a paradox and caused both the naturally created egg and the destined one to be infused with the same powers. Two purple dragons... you... and me." finished Spyro.

Astrial nodded. "However, only I was chosen by the Ancestors and thus, you never inherited their holy powers. As good as you might believe you are... you remain a creature of the darkness, a dark, unholy dragon born out of a forbidden, sinful union."

Ignitus... was his father? He was... born out of a forbidden union, inheriting all of the Dragon of Prophecy's dark powers but none of the light?

And then, Astrial turned to Cynder. "And then, when King Gaul attacked the Dragon Temple, he left only one egg intact... and twisted the hatchling born from it into a dark being. Cynder is tainted. Never will she be purified. She is forever a being of darkness..."

Sparx saw where this was going and well, this was annoying him, GREATLY!

"Who cares?" interrupted the dragonfly. "Why does it bother you so much that Spyro is a bastard kind of sinful dark dragon and that Cynder is... well, was an evil she-dragon?"

Astrial... his eyes glowed in anger.

"Why does it bother me? You are the last couple. Cynder is the last female and Spyro, the last young male dragon. I cannot reproduce, for I am the Dragon of Prophecy and the Dragon of Prophecy is forbidden from doing such lowly things as reproducing! This means that the nature of all future generations will be tainted! All future dragons will be dark dragons!"

And then, Spyro understood everything.

"So... you're upset because that the dragons will be beings of darkness..."

Sparx flung his arms up. "WHO CARES?!? The Ancestors were dead long ago and power is power! I mean, isn't the fact that Spyro isn't evil enough for you? COME ON!"

Astrial's eyes narrowed as he almost lashed out. "NO! NO IT WON'T DO! Darkness... is the source of all evil! It's unholy, sullied, disgusting! How will the new generations ever be able to uphold the traditions, to worship the Ancestors if they are of the very nature the Ancestors hate most?"

Astrial slowly stepped backward...

"It would be better if the dragons disappeared rather than live on as... as... as abominations! And with them, everything else! If the Ancestors will not rule the world... if no one is going to worship them... then life lose all meaning! The Ancestors are the true rulers of everything, the embodiements of good, the source of all salvation! All beings are drawn to darkness, none can find salvation on their own! The only salvation is to submit to the Ancestors and to surrender free will to their eternal glory!... and through their will, the Heaven's Sword... will be our final salvation!"

Then, a gigantic portal opened in the skies of the Dark Realm and they saw it.

The strange object that forever orbited the world, the object that the three had always thought to be nothing but a perfectly natural object... but now, the portal revealed its true nature. It was a monstrous orbital cannon, a massive structure of metal floating in space, high above the Dragon Land Realm.

"It was built by Mortalis to keep a balance between magic and technology... and now, it shall be used to purify the world! If light is to disappear... then so will darkness as well! A world without the Ancestors is a doomed world!... so, in one last blaze of glory, the Final Prophecy shall come true! May the will of the Ancestors prevail!"

And with a mighty roar, Astrial literally shot toward the portal, causing a giant shockwave as he took off...

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	8. Fake

OFF: The end, already? Indeed, this is the final chapter (not counting the epilogue). 

I hope you will enjoy the story's finale just as much as I enjoyed writing it!

* * *

**Final chapter: Fake**

Absolute Power is the source of all corruption... and sometimes, the true face of Evil can take on a surprising form.

* * *

"I can't believe this! We beat the big evil she-dragon and yet, we STILL have to face more visions of doom and darkness and apocalypse? Does fate hate us or something?"

Spyro looked down, barely hearing Sparx.

Cynder slowly approached the purple dragon, worry rising. Why was he looking down like this? Why weren't they giving pursuit?

"Spyro? We should go after him..."

The male remained still and silent for a moment and then, slowly, raised his head and looked at her. He seemed so hesitant and afraid...

"Cynder... Astrial is right. We are the only dragons of the new generation to be born and both of us are creatures of the dark." His gaze became... distant. "Is it worth it? Is it worth it to save the world if the darkness is to rule the world whatever we do?"

Cynder smiled and slowly, shook her head before pointing at Sparx.

"Sparx is right, Spyro. Power is power, light or dark. Just as the Dark Master used darkness for evil, Astrial used the light for destruction in the end. Likewise, you wield dark power... and yet, you are good, Spyro. Besides, there is more to the world than just dragons. Will you let down everyone because that a different age will begin for dragons?"

Spyro thought about it carefully...

He remembered the creatures he had met through his journey. It's true. There is more to the world than the dragons and their enemies. The Realm is massive, inhabited by countless species, countless civilizations...

...and Sparx is right. The power within him is not important. Even though he has the power that is the same as the Dark Master, he is not the Dark Master. Cynder, too, proved that despite her tainted nature, she was a good soul. If the two of them turned out good... then why would every other dragon turn out evil?

In a way, it was ironic when he thought about it.

It all begun when two creatures, Mortalis and Vermintrax, fell in love and gave birth to the specie of dragons. And now, the specie was basically extinct and is about to be revived. Spyro and Cynder... new Ancestors... a new nature...

From the two, a new era will begin. From them, the dragons will be reborn.

But if Astrial isn't stopped, the Realm will be destroyed.

Spyro chased all of the worry out of his mind and turned to the portal in the sky...

"If Astrial is allowed to unleash the Heaven's Sword, there will be no future..." he commented. But as he tried to step forward, he was painfully reminded of his state as he slipped and fell on his stomach, sighing. He was so tired...

Likewise, Cynder felt so totally drained. The happy rush of their fake victory gone, the three realized just how totally exhausted they were. Sparx, yawning loudly, slowly flew to Spyro's side and hovered there, eyes half-closed, obviously as tired as everyone else.

"Good initiative chief! Really!... but what can we do without power? I mean, we're all dead tired! I'm gonna faint any second, you know..." And well, as much as they hated to admit it, Sparx was right.

"There must be something we can do..." said Cynder, looking down.

What can they do, indeed? They had exhausted all of their energy fighting Vermintrax and now, they were in no state to catch up with Astrial and even less defeat him.

The purple dragon looked down, thinking... and when no idea came to him, he weakly slammed his right paw against the rocky ground in frustration.

The sound echoed, disturbing the silence...

...and then, at long last, it dawned upon all of them.

"Is it me or did the screaming thingies shut up?" asked Sparx, raising an eyebrow.

Both dragons looked around and they noticed it, too.

The entire Dark Realm... had fallen silent.

The souls had stopped falling and screaming. Even the flames no longer burnt, the red light now uniform in the abyss below. Everything was silent, as if time had stopped within the Dark Realm...

"Yeah. Now that you mention it..." replied the purple dragon, confused by this turn of event.

...and then, slowly, Cynder realized what it was all about and turned to the young male dragon.

"...the old mistress is gone," she said.

Both males turned to face Cynder, confused by what she meant.

"Vermintrax was the embodiment of darkness, the ruler of the Dark Realm. Now that she's gone, they await a new master," she explained before pointing at them. "Look."

Now that he looked at all of the souls, he noticed that it was true. All of the lost souls had not only stopped falling and screaming... they were now staring at him as well, as if waiting for him to do something. All of their empty gazes were concentrated upon him...

"They await... a new master..." he whispered to himself, coming to realize it as well.

"Hey, oh mauve one! All of the darkness in the Dark Realm... that must probably be a whole lot of power, ya know!" said Sparx, smirking.

Unsure, he turned to Cynder. She nodded to him... "You have the same power as the Dark Master did, Spyro. If you use your power now... the darkness will obey."

All of the power...

Yet, can he use it? Does he have a right to? Should he? All of the darkness... but also all of the suffering. This Realm contained so much suffering, so much hatred, so much regret... would it consume him, would it overwhelm him? He was afraid of becoming like the Dark Master, like Vermintrax did. The darkness was so powerful... but it was also scary, chaotic, merciless. There were so many ways it could go wrong...

But then, as he looked at the souls, he began to wonder...

Why had they stopped screaming and falling? Yes, Vermintrax was dead but... what about the infernal flames? Weren't they threatening to engulf and burn them?

The streams of darkness remained silent...

Power is power... it's not the power that matters but how you use it. To unleash the darkness one last time so that no more souls may be brought into this cursed Realm... to unleash it so that a world free of terror might exist... if this wasn't worth it, then what would be?

He is not the Dark Master nor Vermintrax.

Slowly, the power begun to gather. He could feel all of the streams being redirected toward him, all of the souls listening... what was his will? As this happened, he felt incredible pain, such suffering, such sadness, such regret... all of their feelings. Giving in would be so easy, so tempting... to become like Vermintrax.

No more! No more shall he let those affect him! No more shall the past weight upon him! It is time for the ancient suffering to be wiped and for everything to begin anew! For it all to vanish and for a new beginning to become reality!

And at this moment, the power begun to gather with such intensity that massive waves of dark power were constantly expelled from Spyro's body, causing ripples through the very air of the Dark Realm.

The dragon hatchling slowly rose, his friends carried by the currents...

"For the new future, I guess?" asked the dragonfly.

"For the new future," replied the purple dragon.

"Savior boy one day, savior boy every day..." sighed Sparx, rolling his eyes.

"Yep. Indeed." replied the dragon as the power reached its peak.

And then, just as the power overflowed, he unleashed it all, allowing it to course through his veins and recharging his powers. In an instant, he felt an incredible rush, all of his powers returning to him...

...and as he did as such, the massive ripples went through his friends, resonating with them, giving them power anew as well.

And then, there was a gigantic explosion of purple energy as Spyro released it all, shooting himself and his friends straight into the portal...

* * *

CLANG!

"OW!"

CLUNG!

"OW!"

"Hehehehe! I dunno why but your usual "landings" are even funnier when you have a weird, echoing voice!" mocked Sparx as Spyro slid off the metallic wall.

The dark purple dragon gripped his head, getting a hold of himself. Why couldn't he land correctly just once? Man! What a lousy entrance!... and goodness! Slamming into that metal wall upon landing is even worse than that stupid pillar back at the Dragon Temple! Ugh! He can still hear that metallic impact sound echoing in his head...

"Heeheehee! Yeah, it's true that it's kind of funny!" giggled Cynder, smiling.

"Cynder!" called the purple dragon, visibly annoyed and upset.

"Well, I'd like to sit here, making fun of our dark something mauve guy dude but shouldn't we get moving before Astrial fire this thing and nuke THE WHOLE REALM?" said Sparx, his patience obviously very thin in this case.

But well, he had a point. Cynder quickly calmed down just as Spyro looked around.

They had arrived in the middle of a large room entirely of metal. The place... was quite weird. The floor seemed to be made of glass and yet, it was so incredibly smooth and solid in feel, like metal. Massive networks of cables could be seen on all of the walls, all of them made of pure white metal, streams of red energy going through said cables constantly, like tiny veins. Then, there was the fact that the structure went on so tall vertically that they couldn't see the ceiling. Below the transparent floor, they could see a massive miasma of machines. They didn't know about technology and had no idea what it was for... but they guessed it was related to the cannon and thus, was something bad. The weirdest part? The place was totally bathed in intense light and yet, said light seemed to come out of nowhere...

No doors, only a vertical shaft. Had the portal led them into a dead end, a trap? Where is Astrial?

And then, Sparx noticed him and pointed to the center of the room.

"Hey! Over here!" he yelled, pointing at the creature floating in the middle.

Although Spyro wondered for a moment how he managed to miss him, he quickly chased those thoughts out.

"So... you have come," slowly said Astrial, a confident smirk on his face as he floated in the middle of the room, looking down upon them from his position.

Spyro stepped forward and as he saw Astrial in this position, it saddened him. The way he floated... it was as if he was looking at a mirror. Despite the fact that he was a runt, his traits were exactly the same, considering. One could truly see the similarities...

"Why?" he asked.

The other purple dragon raised an eyebrow, looking down upon Spyro.

"Why are you doing this? I'm not some kind of monster! I am your brother!"

At the mention of this, Astrial's face deformed itself into a huge frown, his eyes almost bulging out from the rage.

"BLASPHEMY!"

The scream of rage was so loud that it caused Spyro to yelp, leaping a bit backward while Cynder let out a whimper, stepping backward. Sparx himself felt as if his heart had stopped beating for a second. In fact, the entire Heaven's Sword probably shook.

"I'm... I'M SICK OF YOU THREE!" screamed the other purple dragon, his rage so intense that one could see the vein on his head bulging. "You know nothing of the dragons' traditions... NOTHING! You live by foreign, barbaric standards of who knows who!"

He pointed accusingly at Spyro.

"Do. Not. Call. Me. Your. BROTHER! I have no family! No dragon ever did! Families... are something made up by other species, by inferior beings! Who cares about the genitor? All dragon eggs were always gathered at temples and then, once hatched, the hatchlings were raised by the Guardians to serve the Ancestors! It has always been this way! Family ties only weaken one's loyalty to the Ancestors! The less you are bound to the mortal plane, the more one can turn itself to the eternal glory of the Ancestors!"

He then pointed at Sparx.

"You... inferior being! The proof of what I am saying! The imposter has turned his back upon his faith in the Ancestors!... what for? FOR A LAUGHABLE MOSQUITOE! Nothing, NOTHING is worth turning our back upon the Ancestors! NOTHING! Everything in this world is finite, weak, temporary, and easy to corrupt! Only... ONLY the Ancestors bring salvation!"

Then, he turned to Cynder.

"Speaking of salvation... Free will is the root of all evil for it brings one away from the Ancestors! All things are weak, all things are drawn by the temptation of darkness! One must accept and follow its fate, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE! Disobedience to the Ancestors is betraying them, it is to serve the darkness! IT IS TO BE EVIL FOR ONLY THEY ARE GOOD! ONLY THEY!"

Then, he turned to Spyro again.

"You hear me? No matter what you do, you will ALWAYS be evil! No intentions can save you... nor anyone! Everyone, everything is sinful, unholy, and tainted in shadows! The light of the Ancestors is the ONLY thing that is TRULY good! To fight for anything else than the Ancestors is BLASPHEMY!"

"Man... I had heard of fanatics but this is just plain ridiculous..." whispered Sparx to himself.

Spyro and Cynder stood there, eyes widened, too shocked to say anything...

"Fanatic... hahaha... fanatic..." Astrial laughed a moment before, slowly, turning to Sparx. At this moment, Spyro almost recoiled from the sight. His face was so... so twisted. He truly, literally seemed insane.

"Astrial... the Ancestors are gone," began Spyro, getting a hold of himself and stepping forward. "They died long ago, when Vermintrax destroyed the ancient civilization. There is no need to be bound to the past anymore."

Astrial's eyes narrowed in rage. "Ar-are you saying that I should give up? THAT I SHOULD GIVE IN TO THE DARKNESS?"

The purple dragon shook his head. "No! It doesn't mean that! Astrial... Vermintrax is gone. The future lies before us. Rather than destroying everything... why don't you help us? Show to the new generations the power of light?"

Sparx raised an eyebrow. "What? You think that lunatic is gonna listen to us?"

Spyro shot a sharp glare at Sparx, making him shut up.

Yes, Astrial was a jerk. He was also a fanatic and maybe a bit insane considering... but he was also his brother. He just discovered he had a brother and now, he must kill him? He has to try, even if it's useless...

"Show them light..." whispered Astrial, sighing.

For a moment, Spyro thought the other purple dragon was really going to give it a chance... but Astrial's face soon deformed into hatred once again.

"The new generation will be born from you and Cynder, dark dragons! They will be darkness! Nothing can be shown to the denizens of darkness. Their only fate is DEATH! This is the only thing they DESERVE! Enemies of the Ancestor! Sinful MONSTERS!"

Slowly, Astrial turned away, once again beginning to laugh...

"Hahaha... hahaha... you're all insane... thinking the world deserves to exist... when we all doomed ourselves. Fools, all of you..." he then turned back to Spyro, grinning evilly.

"The ones you call Guardians... are only a replacement. Maybe the world would have been better if those COWARDS hadn't run away with the eggs. Indeed... for the TRUE Guardians repelled the Dark Armies and protected the holy sanctuary!"

"Hey! If your so-called true Guardians survived and all... why did we find only you, then?" said Sparx, asking the question before Spyro could.

"Because I killed them, of course," replied Astrial.

And at this moment, everyone's eyes widened.

"You... you killed them?" repeated Cynder, horrified.

Astrial smirked. "The ones you call Guardians are weak. Not only did they run away but they refused the full ritual. This is one more reason, excluding the fact that you are impure, why you are weak, imposter! The Guardians are meant to train the Dragon of Prophecy so that he may gain mastery of all elements... and eventually, once mastery has been achieved, the Dragon of Prophecy must prove he has indeed mastered said elements. Full power is never reached during mundane training and thus, a special ritual begins... The Dragon of Prophecy must face the Guardians, one by one, using their own elements... and he must slay them, one by one. These are fights to the death. If the Dragon of Prophecy is unable to do as he must, he is killed, for he is unworthy of his color."

"This... this is horrible... why... why..." whispered the purple dragon, shaking his head. "The Guardians never said anything about that... they never..."

"This is because they are weak, because they lack faith," continued Astrial. "The Guardians, the ones you know, are only novices who were given the title recently, just before the last phase of the war. They lacked the faith to accomplish the ritual. They are... afraid of death. HOW STUPID! Our lives are unimportant! ONLY the Ancestors' will is important! If a dragon must be sacrificed for the will of the Ancestors to be accomplished, then it is a great honor to do so! The ones you call Guardians are a disgrace to all dragons!"

Spyro looked down, shaking his head. He couldn't believe this. His long lost brother... he was completely, entirely insane. There was nothing he could do... nothing...

Cynder slowly approached Spyro and then, brought her right paw to his snout, making him look into her eyes.

"Spyro..." she called, worried.

He looked at her carefully and he also saw Sparx, hovering near, equally worried.

At this moment, he realized it and turned to Astrial, his confidence returning. "Although we might have the same true mother, you are not my brother, Astrial. You are nothing but a shattered soul, a fanatic that believes he can justify everything with his faith."

Astrial closed his eyes. "Very well... I guess it is now time for I to crush all of you then. I will show you what the TRUE Dragon of Prophecy can do!"

"You are not the Dragon of Prophecy. I shall prove it once and for all!" replied Spyro.

And in an instant, Astrial dived straight toward Spyro. The speed of the charge was insane... but he was intercepted by Cynder, who thrown herself into his side and slammed him against the wall.

Annoyed, Astrial tried to shake Cynder off by spinning as he fell back toward the floor but Cynder simply leaped off him... whipping into his side with her tail as she did so, the can opener-shaped blade tearing through his scales as she did so.

Astrial gritted his teeth. The pain was incredible... but he didn't care. He had been raised not to feel pain and thus, it did not stop him.

Seeing the female land on the floor near the two other pests, Astrial opened his mouth and let out a massive stream of flames.

He continued to breath fire for a moment... and then, suddenly, something poked his shoulder. He turned to see Sparx, grinning and pointing upward.

The purple dragon turned to the ceiling only in time to see Spyro curled into a sphere, falling fast toward him, too fast for him to dodge.

SLAM!

"OOF!" gasped Astrial, crushed under the dark purple dragon's weight.

Spyro then jumped off of him, preparing himself for Astrial's imminent counter.

Predictably, Astrial turned around and roared in pain before spitting a massive sphere of green energy.

Spyro easily dodged it by leaping backward but rose an eyebrow when the sphere stopped, not flying into the wall. He then noticed how it was connected to Astrial's mouth via a string of green energy.

And then, Astrial began to run toward Spyro, spinning the sphere like a giant flail of sorts. The dark purple dragon yelped, jumping about as Astrial spun the sphere with great speed and accuracy, nearly slamming it into Spyro at numerous occasions.

Cynder hovered just out of the range of the sphere, waiting for an opening... and then, when Astrial had his back turned, she flapped her wings and leaped...

...but then, Astrial jumped upward, swinging the sphere overhead, straight toward Cynder!

The dragoness yelped as she barely dodged the sphere... but was struck by the shockwave it caused, sending her slamming into the wall.

"Cynder!" called Spyro, losing focus for a moment.

The black dragoness easily got up, shook herself a bit, and adjusted the second bracelet on her tail, near the tip before turning to Spyro.

"I'm okay! Don't lose your focus!" she told him as she begun to run circles around Astrial anew.

During this time, Sparx wondered how to help... and then, saw that stream. Yeah, the sphere is deadly but he guessed that the stream must be somewhat weaker and well, he IS currently infused with Spyro's dark thingy-like power!

Then, just as Astrial managed to corner Spyro and was about to make another overhead swing, Sparx flew for it and unleashed that weird bubble of his, passing straight through the stream, cutting off the connection just as the sphere was above Astrial's head.

Instantly, the sphere fell...

BOOOOM!

...and exploded on top of Astrial, crushing him and stunning him. The insane purple dragon got up just in time to see Spyro run up to him and headbutt his face, causing him to stagger.

Once Astrial off-balance, Spyro chained up with swipes and more headbutts, dealing more and more pain upon the other purple dragon before knocking him into the air. He then leaped and while Astrial was still dazed, proceeded to bite into his shoulders and wings while slamming his tail into his sides and underbelly repeatedly, soon covering Astrial's near, shiny purple scales with patches of crimson.

And then, as he neared the end of his combo, he saw Cynder nearby and moved himself...

"Cynder! Catch!" and with that said, he slammed all of his claws into Astrial at the same time, sending him flying.

Cynder lowered her body and then, did a backflip as Astrial came nearby, slamming all of her claws into him as well as whipping him with her tail, sending him upward again.

Cynder flapped her wings and then begun a combo of her own, using her can opener-shaped tail blade to snatch into Astrial and throw him all around her, each time catching him with her claws before snatching him again. She did so a few times, soon making long cuts everywhere in his body before sending him flying back toward Spyro.

The purple dragon grinned and then, jumped above Astrial at the last second before spinning about and performing a headbutt in mid-air, increasing Astrial's speed further.

BAAAM!

Astrial's eyes widened as he slammed against the wall. The impact was incredibly powerful and to say he had been smacked around a lot by the other two hatchlings was an understatement. Already, his body was covered with cuts, bite marks, and various bumps and scratches.

But as he slid off the wall, Astrial growled. He was NOT going to lose that easily!

The dragon opened his mouth and then called upon his greatest power, firing a MASSIVE beam of light toward Spyro!

...but to his frustration, Spyro effortlessly dodged.

He then directed his attention to Cynder. She gracefully rolled out of the way.

...maybe Sparx? Not only was he a small target but he was even faster, taunting him all the way.

...what kind of monsters are those?!?

And then, he saw Spyro, floating just in front of him, staring at him. That ugly red eye and that other purple one! Those dark purple and light blue scales! Man does he DESPISE him! Just one more being of the darkness...

But then, Astrial was engulfed in purple energy. A constant stream, from Spyro's mouth.

Astrial's eyes widened as he tried to step forward, intend on smacking that imposter's face... but moving was hard. The energy was tearing him apart and he felt so... so slow.

Astrial slowly stepped toward Spyro... and once he made it right in front of him, Spyro ran out of breath and stopped his attack. Astrial remained still for a moment and then, after a loud sigh, collapsed.

"Grrr... why you little..." growled Astrial.

Spyro sat there, staring at Astrial. His expression was awfully serious... and then, he began to shake his head in a disapproving way.

"Too weak... Is the "real" Dragon of Prophecy really this weak?" asked the dark purple dragon.

"Yeah! No offense but that Vermintrax chick was way stronger! Really, you're lucky we weakened her for ya cuz', with that amount of firepower, she would have crushed you in seconds flat! Heck! Considering your strength, it's a wonder you managed to get through that barrage of stupid gorillas back at the scary mountain of whatever!" added Sparx, summarized everyone's opinion.

This, of course, caused Astrial's face to deform even further in rage as he managed to gather enough strength to stand up.

"S-SHUT UP!" he snapped, his expression absolutely horrific. "I am Astrial, the Dragon of Prophecy! I will not be disgraced! The will of the Ancestors will triumph!"

And then, slowly, Astrial stepped backward and then, stood up on his hind legs, spreading his arms toward the ceiling...

"Ancestors! Give me strength!"

And then, the light began to gather.

"Take cover!" yelled Sparx as he went to hide behind one of Spyro's horns, the two dragon hatchlings stepping away from Astrial, bracing themselves for the incoming, obvious Fury attack.

The holy power gathered and soon, it begun to surge through the other purple dragon's body. However, much to Spyro's confusion, Astrial did not release it. Rather, the energy just kept building up, soon forming white flames that covered Astrial's body.

And then, after a long moment, the energy stopped gathered... but rather than exploding outward, the energy imploded and was absorbed by Astrial, his entire body surrounded by a blinding aura for a moment...

Spyro's eyes widened before the horror that he saw. Astrial's wings were literally torn off as massive, feathery white wings pierced right through his back, like humongous tentacles. The very energy turned liquid, coating Astrial's face and beginning to melt his body and cover all of his body, the purple dragon screaming in a mix of pain and berserk rage as it happened. The liquid merged with his body, causing some parts to enlarge, others to shrink...

...and when the horrific transformation was over, Sparx couldn't help but hover there, eyes widened, his face green. "Man... I feel sick..."

Astrial wasn't so beautiful anymore. The energy had now solidified, becoming a new, gooey-like seemingly white hot semi-liquid metal of sorts. Almost all of Astrial's traits were deformed, making him look grotesque. Just like Spyro, Astrial's right eye was now bigger than his left one... except that the size difference was horrible. Wherever Spyro wasn't that bad, Astrial's right eye was swollen, the veins bulging out of the inflated orb. His left eye had shrunk in size, almost reduced to a glowing slit. His entire face had deformed, taking on a shape more akin to Spyro's except that while Spyro's was simply puppy-like, Astrial's felt unnatural, artificial, ugly. His wings had been torn off almost entirely, only connected to him via nerves that connected them to his new wings. Speaking of new wings... Astrial had three pairs of them, all positively over-sized, two of them hanging low and brushing against the floor as he floated, the middle one resting in a horizontal position, the top one pointing upward. A large halo was placed diagonally, above Astrial's head, to his left. Large amounts of the energy had spreaded from his back, covering his face, chest, and arms with bulging white veins and nerves, most of the semi-liquid metal now covering his left arm, turning it into a massive, grotesquely huge hammer-like limb that ended with massive spikes, the remains of his fingers and claws. To finish the portrait, Astrial's limbs had split into pairs of tentacles ending with sharp, hook-like claws while his tail had split into tentacle-like mixes between a feathery wing and a whip, each one ending with a straight stinger.

"Be... beHOLD!" just as his body was deformed, so is now his voice. It was an unnatural, echoing, gurgling voice, as if Astrial had some sort of liquid in his mouth. A mix of intense pain and hatred mixed to his voice, making it every bit as creepy as his body considering... "Th-the THE sublime FORM of the desTINED ANgel, the CHOSEN ONE, the saVIOR OF all draGONS!"

"Wha-WHAT? This... is supposed to be an ANGEL form? Sheesh! And I thought Vermintrax was creepy," commented Sparx.

And well, that is true. If Astrial had supposedly infused himself with the power of the Ancestors, why had he turned into such an abomination? He was barely recognizable! Heck! His eyes were stilled, so devoid of emotion...

"FOOLS! I... I... I HAVE TRANSFORMED INTO AN ANGEL DRAGON! DO NOT MOCK THE GORGEOUS FORM OF THE DRAGON OF PROPHECY!" boomed Astrial, the many veins on his veins bulging even more as rage raked through him.

Sparx leaned forward, raising an eyebrow, staring intently at Astrial... "Hmmm... well, there seems to be a halo... and feathery wing thingies... but I hardly call THAT an angel form!"

"I... I bring RETRIbution! It is your PERCEptions thAT ARE flawed! I shall... burn... away... your SINFUL... NATURES!"

Astrial yelled that last word, unleashing a massive shockwave that took everyone by surprise, sending the two hatchlings and the dragonfly slamming into the wall.

However, they were not going to let Astrial take the advantage like that, transformation or not. Spyro's left eye glowed as the dark power shrouded his body, causing the impact against the wall to be as if he had been sent into a large, comfy pillow. Unharmed, he spun in mid-air and landed on his paws, ready to fight. Right after that, Spyro spreaded his left wing, catching Sparx in mid-air before he slammed into the wall.

"You're okay?" asked the dark purple dragon.

"Just perfect..." replied the dragonfly in a mocking voice.

Likewise, Cynder spun as she was sent flying and kicked into the wall when she came in close, sending herself flying back at Astrial.

However, the deformed purple dragon saw it coming and slammed his hammer-like metal-coated paw into Cynder's face just as she came in close, sending her sliding across the floor.

Although worry rose within Spyro, he managed to get a hold of himself this time and instead dashed toward that bastard. Oh yeah, he will show him!

Spyro jumped to meet Astrial and begun to spin about, slamming his claws into him! Unfortunately, much to his frustration, Astrial simply brought his wings forward, using them to block the strikes. His attacks were not having the slightest effect...

And then, he too received a mighty hit that send him sliding across the floor.

"Man! What are those wings made of? Reinforced steel?" asked Sparx, not understanding how Astrial had managed to block his adoptive brother's strikes.

Both dragon hatchlings quickly got up, more annoyed than really hurt. Astrial had an evil smirk...

Both hatchlings reared back and then, launched their attack at the same time. From the left, Spyro let out a rather impressive cone of flames as well as a serie of small fireballs that flew straight toward Astrial. From the right, Cynder let out a serie of flaming meteor-like projectiles.

Astrial brought his wings together...

FWOOOOSH!

BOM! BOM! BOM!

After a moment, both dragons stopped, preparing to dash toward their probably off-balance, fried foe... but neither of them actually begun their charge, their confidence replaced with shock. Astrial was completely unharmed. His smirk widened further...

"Now that's getting ridiculous," said Sparx, arms crossed... and then, his eyes widened as he pointed at the two. "HEY! Spyro! Cynder! Look alive!"

Astrial had thrown two small spheres at both dragons. Spyro yelped and ducked out of the way at the last second. Cynder wasn't too lucky however. She barely had the time to try anything that the sphere slammed into her... and then... she felt... weird...

In an instant, weird energy tentacles shot out of Cynder's body and wrapped themselves around Astrial's hand. His smirk was seriously creepy now...

In an instant, Astrial pulled on the tentacles, bringing Cynder to him. The black dragoness glared fearlessly at him...

"You will die," said the deformed purple dragon.

"Not a chance," snapped Cynder.

And then, as Cynder tried to beat her wings, trying to break free, Astrial's face deformed as he begun to yell out of pure rage. Then, in an instant, MASSIVE tentacles of light ending with giant, dangerous-looking stingers emerged from his back.

"This... looks bad," commented Sparx.

Spyro felt intimidated for a moment but figured out that there was no time for such things. He charged forward, running as fast as he could toward Astrial. If he could strike him while he's busy making a scene...

BAM!

But then, Spyro smashed headfirst into an invisible barrier. His eyes widened as panic begun to rise. No! He can't let that happen!

...but it was too late. Cynder gritted her teeth, closing her eyes as she braced for the incoming attack. That was going to hurt...

SLASH SLASH SLASH SLASH!

Cynder couldn't help it. She opened her eyes and screamed as the massive stingers pierced through her flesh from seemingly every angle, pain raking through her entire body.

Then, slowly, all of the stingers were slowly removed from her body except for the top one, which had pierced her chest, Astrial using it to carry her and placed on eye level with him...

Then, Astrial's eyes flashed and a MASSIVE beam of light was fired from his mouth. Instantly, Cynder was torn off the hook-like stinger and promptly slammed in the closest wall with absolutely incredible force.

The dragoness tried to scream from the pain again but only an incomprehensible sound came out as crimson liquid flooded her mouth and prevented her from letting out her cry of pain. She painfully slid down the wall, a trail of red on the wall...

"I wish... I hadn't watched that..." whispered Sparx, pale, as Spyro ran up to Cynder, sick with worry.

"C-Cynder?" he called, hoping that the attack hadn't been lethal. That attack... that had been awful. Truly awful...

Coughing a bit, blood escaping her throat, Cynder truly looked in a bad shape. She weakly looked up to the purple dragon.

"Don't worry about me... I'll... I'll survive. Take out Astrial..." she whispered.

Then, clawing into the floor, Cynder slowly managed to get up despite her injuries. Although still shocked by her injuries, the fact that she was okay, against all odds, made his worry disappear. In fact, he felt the boost of rage rise up as he turned toward Astrial...

"Astrial..." he muttered, his eyes glowing as he felt the rage rise up.

"Oh! What's wrong, imposter? Worried about your to-be-mate?" asked Astrial in a mocking tone, the tentacles slowly disappearing. "Don't make that face. I know, for sure, that beings of the darkness cannot feel things such as compassion and love. You do not care for her. You are nothing but a twisted soul."

When Spyro stepped forward, his face looked... terrible.

"Well, I just had enough of this guy," stated Sparx, his face now similar to Spyro's. The two looked at each other for a moment... "Say... you got a whole lot of rage in your heart now, don't you? Surely, you must have some kind of awesome technique that could turn it into destructive power to throw at this guy, right?"

Spyro thought about it. Turning hatred into power?

...yes.

Deep inside, he knows he has such a power... the greatest of all powers. But... can he use it? Will it corrupt him? If he use such a power... he will have to let all of his hatred go through him and there is a difference between the cold darkness and the raw rage that fuel it.

"Yes but..." Sparx didn't let Spyro finish what he was saying.

"Hey! You unleashed your full power and still weren't corrupted. You've proven more than enough times that you're above such temptation mumbo jumbo. So... what are you waiting for? Go ahead and blast him already!"

He had used the power more during those last battles than he had ever used it before... and yet, he hadn't lost himself. It was his darkness. As long as he doesn't forget who he is, as long as he remembers why he fights, he can unleash his full power with no fear.

Slowly, Spyro begun to rise...

Astrial brought his wings together to protect himself once more...

"HA! That won't work!" he taunted.

Spyro didn't listen. He reached deep into the reaches of his heart...

"The hopes of all beings... the dreams of the future... and MY ANGER!" said Spyro, almost as if reciting incantations of sorts, the final fury beginning to course his veins.

And then, closing his eyes, the purple dragon allowed the power to resonate with his soul. As the darkness coursed through him, spikes of purple energy begun to rise everywhere around him, the power resonating and pulsating rhythmically with his own heart, as if synchronized with his soul and body...

... and then, Spyro opened his eyes and screamed in rage as he allowed all of his anger to surface, concentrating it all into himself and then firing it out of his body.

In an instant, MASSIVE waves of pure, purple dark power were shot out of the dark purple dragon.

The waves filled Cynder and Sparx with strength. Any injuries they had received were being healed as the power coursed them. In a way, they were surprised... but on another hand, they figured out why the darkness did not hurt them...

As for Astrial, the massive waves slammed against his wings. Surprise filled his face as his wings were completely torn apart, each wave tearing the feathers off them. Then, the waves slammed against his body, blasting his scales and tearing them off, completely consuming his flesh.

Then, after firing about eleven of those waves, Spyro's rage was exhausted. Feeling strangely relieved and calm, he floated back to the floor. The dark power continued to pulse through him as he stood there. Slowly, he looked up...

Astrial's remaining eye were widened as he floated there, trembling from the pain. His face had been torn apart, the right half of his face totally gone, revealing the skull underneath. His chest had been ripped open and his left arm was completely gone. All of his wings, both his real ones and feathery ones, had been reduced to the state of broken shapes with only a few feathers and bones left dangling. His entire lower body had been vaporized.

Then, his power failing, Astrial plummeted to the floor and fell straight on where his lower body used to be, red soon covering the floor near him...

Slowly, the three beings approached the fallen purple dragon...

Looking up to Spyro, an expression of deep shame was on his face, his whole body trembling from the lethal injuries...

"Why? Why did I lose? I... I am the Dragon of Prophecy... I was meant to be... a hero..." he cried, his voice already fading.

"Well, you sure do seem to be a weeeird type of hero, if you ask me! I mean... aren't heroes supposed to SAVE people, not doom them? Blasting them with a big beam-o-death because they don't have as much faith as you do is a strange way of saving the world, if you ask me!" said Sparx, summarizing everyone's thoughts on the issue very well.

Spyro smiled weakly, shaking his head at Astrial while Cynder stepped forward.

"I just remembered something..." she said. "Spyro, although ultimately the imposter, was a hero because he wasn't as naive as you, Astrial. He fought for the sake of the world, for the sake of those who lived, to safeguard good. He didn't blindly follow a few deities, never questioning whenever what he was doing was truly the right thing to do."

"Astrial..." continued Spyro. "It's not the power that is important. Fire, ice, earth, electricity... even darkness and light. They're all just power. It's not what you wield that is important but how you use it. The Guardians used to tell me this... and now, I know more than ever that it is true."

"Yeah yeah! Well, you failed, Astrial!" finished Sparx. "Bye bye, now! We'll add a footnote to the history books about your failure, don't worry!"

Despite his fading strength, even with all of the pain, Astrial's heart still raged, his sole eye glowing with malice...

"No... no... I... I won't forgive you. I'll never forgive any of you. This world will be purified. I'll take down everyone and everything with me!"

And then, there was a weird ray of light coming from the ceiling, illuminating Astrial's shape for some reason.

"Ancestors! Spirits of the holy dragons! I am Astrial, the Dragon of Prophecy, the Last Dragon! I surrender my body and soul to you! Use my body! Infuse me with the power of light! May the Final Prophecy come true! For your eternal glory!"

"What the..." Sparx muttered, all three stepping away as the light begun to intensify, Astrial's body progressively turning into light until...

BOOOOOM!!!

Spyro shielded his eyes as a blinding light filled the room...

...and then, when he could finally see again, his eyes widened.

"What the... What's this freaky thing?!?" asked Sparx, panicking.

Where Astrial used to be was probably the strangest creature Spyro had ever seen. Its head was shaped like a cross and it had a single, red eye in the middle of it, one red eye on the left and right tips of the cross-shaped head. Three halos revolved around said head and an extremely thin and long neck linked it to an armor-like chest. Rather than having front legs, the creatures had a pair of massive, feathery yet metallic-looking wings, adding to its three pairs of metallic-like feathery wings sprouting from the back. Likewise, rather than having legs, it had more pairs of metallic-like feathery wings. The long, tentacle-like tail ended with a huge, cross-shaped stinger. Overall, the creature was midway between the size of the hatchlings and the size of an adult dragon.

"Mortalis?" asked Cynder, confused.

"Nah... its eyes are too freaky and empty. It's some kind of lame, creepy imitation," replied Sparx, hoping that the thing didn't have the same kind of power Astrial had.

Slowly, the incarnation looked down at the three...

"I am the will of the Ancestors. Within me, their spirits and powers live. This world is tainted. The Heaven's Sword shall burn away the sinful nature of all beings. You, dragons, must accept your fate."

"Oh goodie! It's as messed up as that Astrial freak!" commented Sparx, arms crossed, quite a bit annoyed.

Then, before they could say anything, the thing shot itself toward the ceiling...

"Spyro... I may not know anything about this place but if we allow this thing to get away..." Spyro nodded. He knew what Cynder was talking about. Everyone knew.

"Well... looks like this is the final battle..." the purple dragon whispered to himself before turning to the others. "This is my battle. I will understand if you do not wish to follow me..."

"What? Quit at the very end? Who do you think we are? Sane people who don't run up to things that are made of doom and freaky judgement and death?" asked Sparx before looking down, frowning. "Man... I'm as crazy as you are now..."

"Cynder? You..." the female approached him and placed her paw in front of his mouth, interrupting him.

"I'm okay. Let's go," she said, nodding.

The purple dragon smiled as he placed himself in the middle of the room. He was... so grateful to have such friends... so grateful...

"Will of the Ancestors or not... it's just Astrial's body possessed by a bunch of evil tyrant-wannabes who tortured their mother to insanity. If we could defeat Astrial... then together, we shall win this battle together," announced Spyro as he allowed the power to once again flow. There was no feeling of anger, no fear, no sadness... only determination.

The two were slowly bathed into his powers, nodding...

And then, the three of them were shot toward the ceiling, following the incarnation through the tunnel leading to the orbital cannon's core...

* * *

Carried both by the power and the wings, the three flew through the tunnels like a purple blur, following the trail of white through the maze that made up the orbital cannon's tunnels.

Turning left, going down, going up, turning right, turning right... a real maze. Yet, they didn't lose the trail. They weren't going to.

Faster and faster... pursuing the incarnation...

And then, after what seemed to be forever, Sparx pointed at the distance as they finally reached the last tunnel, a seemingly endless one leading into the very center of the station...

"Over here!" he called.

Indeed, Spyro could see it. In the distance, the mock-up of Mortalis, the Lunar Dragon. Although it was identical in form, none of his warmth could be felt. It was a cold copy, a weapon born out of Astrial's anger mixed to the fallen Ancestors' refusal to fully disappear.

Even beyond death, Astrial's hatred threatened to consume the Realms...

Finally sensing their presence, the incarnation turned to face then, not even slowing down. Seems like it flies using its powers, the wings seemingly being for show...

The creature showed no signs of annoyance, no signs of frustration, no signs of fear nor anger nor anything. It remained totally empty, totally expressionless, not even a single feeling radiating from it. Even with his power reaching its peak, Spyro couldn't detect any kind of semblance of life in the enemy he was now facing.

Its empty stare was puzzling, going straight toward you as if the creature didn't even see you to begin with.

...but see, it did. That, the three were sure of as the thing pointed one of its wings at the purple dragon and fired a beam of pure light, which Spyro skillfully dodged. Although he wasn't the best at flying, the power helped him, making it feel as if it was more like he was running than truly flying... or maybe that was just his imagination. Regardless, he did manage to do a barrel roll out of the way.

"Not very talkative, heh?" commented Sparx, glad for once that the enemy wasn't blurting out non-sense... although the ominous silence of their foe wasn't much better either.

The creature pointed all of its wings toward each of the three and begun to fire beam after beam. Sparx's confidence quickly vanished as he was soon forced to fly in erratic patterns, dodging the beams.

Cynder and Spyro, them, calmly watched the foe and reacted accordingly. There was no reason to panic, not anymore. If they panicked, they would die for even if the beams didn't kill them, they would probably plummet a fair bit of distance if they were knocked out of the sky. So, rather than thinking of such things, they focused on the task at hand.

Spyro opened his mouth just as Cynder did so, in-between two dodges.

ZWAAAAM!

FWOOOSH!

A large wave of purple energy was shot from Spyro while Cynder breathed a solid sphere of lava toward the foe.

Both attacks disappeared before actually touching their foe, doing absolutely no damage, glimpses of a force field briefly visible for a moment...

"Ugh! Just what we needed! The thing's shielded!" commented Sparx in-between two dodges.

"Not for long," said Cynder as she turned to the purple dragon. Both nodded, understanding what the other wanted. Then, they both turned to Sparx...

"Ha! I get it..." he said before smiling. "Well, that ought to work."

'It must,' thought Spyro as his power reached out to both Cynder and Sparx... and then, in an instant, the connection was established, their powers beginning to synchronize, Spyro once again building up the final Fury just as Sparx and Cynder gathered their own powers.

As the three begun to build up their power, the creature kept firing beams. In fact, it begun to fire more and more beams.

Yet, even as its attacks became more intense and numerous, its face remained as lifeless as ever. But the three no longer cared, totally concentrating, the power building up.

The end was in sight. The core was closer and closer. They could see the end of the tunnel and the massive machine that the incarnation wished to run into. They were running out of time... and likewise, the thing was firing at a scary rate and with increasingly incredible precision.

One time too many, Sparx felt the beams brush against his wings. Spyro barely avoided one more beam, the light brushing against his underbelly and then, a second one going just between his wings, almost catching something. Likewise, Cynder squeezed through three of those deadly streams of white energy, barely avoiding death.

Yet, despite the situation, there was no fear. There was no more need for fear. It was the decisive moment, once and for all.

The power... it overwhelmed them. All of the hope, all of the dreams... all mixed to the anger, to the sorrow, to the pain... and the desire to survive, the will to live.

The creature stopped firing as it felt the core close by. Just a moment now...

"NOW!" yelled Spyro.

And then, in an instant, the combined power of their furies was unleashed.

Slowly, one by one, the giant purple spikes of dark power begun to form as Spyro's dark power surged through his body once again, his soul resonating not only with the power but with the power inside of his friends. Then, once the spikes formed a sphere around him, he closed his eyes and allowed the power to go straight through him, using his body as a cannon as he once again unleashed the massive waves of darkness. One by one, the gigantic waves smashed into the incarnation, shattering the shield into a million pieces...

With Spyro's power unleashed, it was Cynder's turn to unleash her gathered power.

The energy went through her entire body, filling her up entirely, filling her mind with a strange, warm feeling. It felt like malice and yet, there was no evil will inside of her, only a strange, nameless desire. And then, closing her eyes as well, she allowed the power to surge through her, her collar and various rings glowing in a radiant golden light as they reacted to the power.

Soon after that, two massive streams of energy were shot from her and latched into her friends before the same stream linked the two together and them back to her, connecting them all, their souls synchronized.

"Showtime." said Sparx, smirking as he felt the pure power flow through him.

Spyro didn't hesitate. He opened his eyes and then teleported next to the incarnation. The rage raking through him, he vented it out of him under the form of powerful, incredibly fast slices, headbutts, and bites. It was crazy, Spyro unleashing attack after attack without stopping...

BAM!

Then, after a while, Spyro smacked the incarnation especially hard with his head, sending it flying toward Sparx. The dragonfly clenched his fists and stood there, ready... and when the mock-up finally came close, he spun around, sending himself upward, delivering the mother of all uppercuts to it. Before the incarnation could recover, Sparx gathered his remaining power and pointed at it, firing massive spheres of yellow energy at an incredible rate of fire, literally pushing it toward Cynder.

Finally, once he was in range, Cynder spun quickly and latched into the being with her can opener-shaped tail blade just as Sparx exhausted his power and stopped firing. She smirked before beginning to pummel the creature in a way not unlike Spyro had done, making sure that to slice as deep as possible into it with her can opener-shaped blade before throwing it with her tail into the center of the triangle that she, Spyro, and Sparx now formed around their foe.

At last, Sparx unleashed the last of the power.

Sparx's usual yellow aura became a blinding field of light, covering all three and concentrating all of the remaining power into each of the three.

Then, finally, the final attack began, Sparx pointing at the incarnation with both hands, channeling all of his feelings and power into one last blast.

ZAAAAAAAAP!

A pure white-ish yellow stream of energy was shot. It slammed into the incarnation, the energy so intense that little yellow sparks begun to fly out of the creature.

FWOOOOOSH!

Cynder was next. Her own power amplified by Sparx's and Spyro's powers, she opened her mouth and breathed the single most massive stream of dark red fiery energy she had ever breathed, the incredible inferno mixing to Sparx's power. The heat of the inferno was such that it would have molten even the hardest substance on contact and now, it mixed to Sparx's own power.

The incarnation begun to tremble, the energy beginning to overwhelm it...

Then, at last, Spyro opened his mouth and unleashed his own attack.

SWOOOOOSH!

Out of his mouth, a humongous stream of pure purple energy was sent flying. It slammed into the incarnation, the full extend of Spyro's wrath washing all over the incarnation like an unstoppable tidal wave.

BAM! BAM! BAM BAM BAM! BOOM! BAM!

...the combined powers were too much for the creature to handle. Its shape begun to deform as the power was tearing it inside out, the Mortalis incarnation unable to keep it all inside of itself. The energy was escaping its body, making holes in its scales as it pierced through, small explosions rocking its body.

And then, at the end, the three gathered the most intense of their feelings, mixing to their powers, amplified by each others' powers, and unleashed one last attack, all at the same time.

Each of them fired a gigantic sphere of pure, raw, untamed energy. Sparx's was yellow, Cynder's was red, and Spyro's was purple. All of the three spheres brutally slammed into the incarnation, seemingly crushing it before deforming, forcefully penetrating into the incarnation's body.

And then, the incarnation seemed to let out a loud gasp, the power too intense for it to resist it.

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The incarnation exploded, the energy completely overwhelming it, sending pieces flying everywhere. Soon enough, the entire tunnel was covered with small feathers and particles of light, the foe finally defeated.

Its body now nothing but a burning hollow shell, the incarnation's life slipped away and it rolled its eyes, its mind becoming one with the void. Its burning remains, still surging with power, slowly floated backward a moment before falling straight down straight toward the core...

BOOM!

The Mortalis mock-up's fall ended as it slammed into the core and exploded one last time, finally vaporized for good. At this moment, the core begun to go crazy, blue thunderbolts shooting like crazy out of it as its damaged systems begun to awry...

"Come on, buddy! That thing's gonna blow! Let's GO!" yelled Sparx, already panicking again.

Spyro shot one last glance at the core before he unleashed the last of his gathered power, sending himself and his friends flying away from the core at an incredible speed, the core exploding just as they escaped, a gigantic ball of fire beginning to spread as the chain reaction begun to consume the orbital cannon...

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	9. Fate

OFF: Well, this is it. The epilogue. I had a blast writing this fic. I hope you liked the fic as much as I enjoyed writing it! 

Have a nice day everyone!

Feel free to review, comment, or even make suggestions for new fics, by the way. I really don't mind at all!

* * *

**Epilogue: Fate...**  
History is built out of the Blood and Bravery of the Living and Departed alike. May it be burden or ally, Fate is ever vigilant... and quick to fight back when opposed.

* * *

The Guardians all stood on the Dragon Temple's balcony, looking up into the skies. Silently, the sword-shaped metal construction continued to float high in the clouds, pointed toward the world, its tip glowing in an ominous green light... 

"What is that... thing?" asked Cyril, breaking the silence.

"Judging from the appearance, it is a large mechanical structure of sorts. However, I have absolutely no idea how it can be floating there or what its significance might be. I am truly confused by this twist of fate," said Volteer, every bit as confused as all the others.

This gigantic sword... an artificial structure most obviously. Ignitus had a bad feeling deep in his heart. This was what he had seen in the Pool of Visions, the Final Prophecy...

When the world is covered in darkness, when the last dragons breathe their last, a single sword, high above the earth, high above the clouds, high above the corrupted, darkened Realm.

Then, a single dragon... the Dragon of Prophecy.

And then, in the name of the Ancestors, a purifying beam of light and then... nothing.

The Last Dragon will purify the Realm one last time, bringing an end to the ages as the darkness triumphs. The end of the world. The final moment. The apocalypse...

He had never thought he would live to see it. No one could fathom such a thing. One cannot plan for death... even less for the end of all things.

A nameless fear rose within him and worry gripped his heart. What had happened to Spyro, to Cynder, to Sparx? Are they well? Did they succeed?... Are they still alive?

"I do not know for sure... but what I know is that this vision is a bad omen. The Final Prophecy..." he trailed off.

Volteer slowly lowered his head. "Most terrible, indeed! If that thing truly is the portent of the end of the world, then it might spell doom for all things!"

Mixed reactions...

Terrador remained calm while Cyril, him, glared at Volteer, his eyes showing annoyance. "Oh please! Don't tell me you hadn't seen THAT coming! The Dark Master's imminent return, the Dark Armies' triumph, the annihilation of our civilization, the slaughter of nearly the entire next generation..."

Noticing the glares that the red and yellow dragons were giving to Cyril, Terrador stepped forward.

"Ignitus, Volteer. We have done our best but ultimately, we have failed. The age of dragons is over. All we can do is accept our fate. The Ancestors... await our souls..."

"But what about young Spyro? And Cynder? And Astrial?" replied the yellow dragon quickly, as if panicking.

The green dragon closed his eyes, shaking his head slowly. "May the Ancestors have mercy upon their souls..."

The blue dragon smirked seeing the situation and turned to Ignitus. "You shouldn't have sent them, Ignitus. They are nothing but common hatchlings! Did you truly expect them to make a difference? PAH!"

"Do not say such things, Cyril! Do not say such things!" said Volteer surprisingly slowly as he shook his head, anger beginning to creep slowly but surely in his voice.

BOOOOM!!!

All four dragons were startled and then, all of their eyes widened as they saw it in the sky, a large fireball where the Heaven's Sword used to be...

"What... how... why..." mumbled Volteer.

And then, as he stared at the sphere, a realization came to the red Guardian.

The Final Prophecy was meant to be completed by the Last Dragon and involved a beam of light, not the structure exploding. This could only mean that...

"I must... check something," said the red dragon as he spreaded his wings, leaving the other three behind.

He had seen a purple trail, like an otherworldly comet in the forest of mushrooms in the distance...

* * *

"Spyro... wake up, Spyro."

Startled, the purple dragon hatchling opened his eyes quickly, rolling back on his paws only to be greeted by Cynder and Sparx, the both of them smiling.

"We're... we're alive?" asked Spyro, still a bit shaken from that last battle.

"Yep! We finally did it, Spyro! We've beaten all of the bad guys and saved the world... for real, this time! We're heroes!" announced Sparx, overjoyed.

The purple dragon looked into the skies. Rain? No... those trails in the horizon looked more like falling meteors.

...the debris of the Heaven's Sword.

It was also then that he finally noticed that the collar and bracelets on Cynder were gone. Likewise, he had reverted to his regular purple and yellow color scheme, the dark flames gone. Back to normal...

"Well, I guess you must have used up all of your dark power thingy since you're back to normal," continued Sparx.

And then, Cynder shook her head, smiling sadly. "No. The power is drained... but it's still there. I can still feel it within myself and inside of Spyro too. It's a part of us now... we truly are dark dragons..."

"Aw nuts! I thought we were rid of that," whined Sparx, throwing his arms up in frustration, which brought a smile to the hatchling.

"Well, Sparx! I don't know about you but I don't feel like causing the world trouble! You're already enough trouble all on your own!" mocked the male hatchling, smirking.

"HEY! Take that back, mister 'I spew out dark stuff outta my mouth'!" snapped back the dragonfly, visibly upset.

The dragoness brought her paw to her mouth, suppressing a giggle.

"Hmph hmph! Heehee! Well!" she said, turning to Spyro. "I'm sure glad that power didn't change you, Spyro."

Spyro raised an eyebrow, beating his wings once, as if slightly upset. "What are you talking about? Of course it changed me!"

Sparx and Cynder stood there, silent for a moment, confusion and worry rising...

"I'm much cooler now!" finished Spyro proudly.

"Why you little..." began the dragonfly while Cynder smiled anew.

"I guess you truly did change, after all!" she said, smiling too.

And then, everyone laughed.

They were alive, the world was saved, life was good...

At long last, the nightmare is over, the journey is finished, the task is completed.

"Heh! Can't wait to see the Guardians' faces when we'll come back to them! We'll have such a story to tell, oh yeah!" said the dragonfly.

"To say the least! Let's go," replied the purple dragon as he begun to walk back toward the temple.

"Right behind you, chief!" said Sparx, following closely.

"I'm with you, Spyro," added Cynder, walking at his side.

And with that said, the three begun to make their way back toward the temple...

A moment of peace. It felt so strange, walking through the place without the fear of the Dark Ones. With their masters gone, the Dark Ones had no more reason to attack the area, Spyro guessed...

"So, how much time have I spent unconscious?" asked the purple dragon as they walked, breaking the silence.

"A good hour or so. You were pretty exhausted but then, so were we. That final battle was truly something..." replied the dragoness.

Silence.

As he walked, the purple dragon gazed upon the place that was his home. It was strange that he had never noticed how beautiful the forest of mushrooms truly was. A peaceful, mystical place, magic floating through the air, the air warmth. Even in the darkness of this dawn before the sun, the place retained its serenity and beauty.

No one will threaten this place anymore...

Then, after what seemed to be hours, they reached a clearing.

Spyro recognized the area. The silver river, its clean waters streaming silently through the forest.

"Gotta do something, buddy! I'll be right back!" said the dragonfly before flying away...

And thus, he found himself alone with Cynder, sitting by the edge of the river...

Faint footsteps and soon enough, he felt the female sit just next to him, her scales brushing slightly against his side.

"So... it's finally over..." she said, thoughtful.

Spyro nodded, still watching the sky. "Yes. Finally..."

There was a pause and slowly, the two young dragons turned to each others. Despite the black color of her scales, Cynder almost seemed to glow in the fading night. It was strange how much they had changed over the course of their journey. Hope, dreams, friends... and love. The adventures of a life time... and within the space of only a few months. They hadn't even reached puberty and already, so much had been experienced. It was all so amazing and incredible... and yet, completely true.

Slowly, a smile came to them and despite their best efforts, they both begun to blush. Instinctively, without even noticing it, their tails intertwined as they stared into each others' eyes...

"Spyro... will you truly stay by my side? Were you... sincere?" she asked, a bit of nervousism rising.

Slowly, his smile widened and he placed his right wing over her back, covering her as he got closer.

"I wasn't lying, Cynder. I truly do care for you... I truly do love you. I am now sure of it."

And then, her smile widened as well. "That coming from the mouth of a child. But so am I and well, I believe in you, Spyro... I believe in us."

Noticing her look becoming distant, he placed his paw on her shoulder.

"Is something wrong, Cynder?" he asked, wishing to help her.

The female sighed before looking into the skies. "It might seem strange but... now that it's over, I realize that we won't get to travel together again..."

The purple dragon rolled his eyes, amused. "What? Really, Cynder... The world is vast! I'm sure there's a lot more trouble out there we can get into!"

The female stared at him for a moment and then, chuckled a bit. "Hehehe! Yeah! You're completely right!"

And then, another moment of silence, just remaining close... and then, slowly, peace and serenity came to the two. As she stared at the sky, she noticed how the shades of orange were slowly rising. Dawn is coming... the dawn of a new day... and of a new age. So beautiful, so poetic and... as he stared at him, she also had the strangest thought. In a way, maybe it was so romantic too. She wasn't much for romance, neither was he. Why should they? Not like they're mature enough for this yet but still...

"Say, Spyro..." she said, breaking the silence and bringing his attention back to her. "Something's missing..."

The male raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

"Isn't the hero supposed to kiss the female at the end? I thought that, as the famous hero who saved the world, that you'd get the female!"

A slight smile...

"Yeah, I suppose you're right... although I don't know if I can truly be called a hero. Yeah, we saved the world and all... but Astrial was the true Dragon of Prophecy..." Cynder brought her paw to his snout, stopping him.

"To me... you'll always be the true Dragon of Prophecy..." she whispered.

"Thank you Cynder... thank you..." he whispered back, the emotion beginning to form some kind of ball in his throat.

Cynder slowly shook her head. "No. I should be the one thanking you. I owe you everything..."

"... and I as well," said the purple dragon as soon as she trailed off.

More silence... and then, slowly, the male's smile widened as he relaxed.

"Well... I guess I'll give it a try then..."

Slowly, the male wrapped his right wing around the female as he brought himself closer, his snout brushing against her own, leaning against her. The female simply moved herself, still keeping her balance although she did lean backward, following the male's movement, placing her right front leg in-between his own, the left one on his side. The two stood like this, Spyro kind of holding her diagonally, staring into each others' eyes, their snouts touching...

Spyro hesitated one last time and Cynder was a bit nervous as well, the both of them blushing wildly. But well... they kissed once. Surely it can't be THAT hard to do it again, right? Besides, he felt... warm, nice, safe, happy with her. She invokes so many feelings within him and likewise, she feels it too. There is no reason to worry...

Chasing away their worries, they closed their eyes as slowly, they opened their mouths, proceeding to kiss. Pushing into the female, the two slowly dove to the ground, the couple kissing deeply, the two' tongues waltzing with each others within their mouths.

Although the two didn't feel the rush of hormones yet due to their age, the kiss still pleased the two greatly, the two bathing into each others' love. In fact, in a way, it was a testament to the purity of their love, showing that it was genuine not needing any hormonal mumbo jumbo to exist, their feelings untouched by lust.

Although he wished to keep doing that for a long while, Spyro eventually felt his lungs screaming for air and thus, reluctantly broke it. The two dragons slowly opened their eyes and stared at each others, a radiant smile on their faces...

Both dragons suddenly turned to their left, raising an eyebrow...

"... for a moment, I expected Sparx to interrupt us," commented the male.

The female couldn't help but smile. "Well, I guess it's habit."

Slowly, Spyro turned back to Cynder, amusement rising within. "We're a bunch of weirdos. We're hatchlings and yet, already kissing and promising each others the moons."

"I wouldn't take it any other way. The youngest heroes... and now, the youngest couple. What's next? Well, I have an idea..." her tone changed as she trailed off, her smile turning naughty... although not the usual childish naughtiness Spyro was used to. This sudden change confused the purple dragon.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" The female's smile widened even further, amused by the male's expression.

"Bah. Stuff I learnt due to my temporary venture into the realm of adults. I'll show you in time, don't worry!" she told him.

"Stuff?" repeated the purple dragon, still confused.

"Don't sweat it! It will come... in time." She then winked at him, slowly spreading her wings over the ground and relaxing, adjusting herself. "Say... that sure was fun. What do you say if we resume?"

Well, that's something he can understand! His smile and confidence quickly returned. "Well... not like we have much else to do so, why not?"

And then, the two resumed kissing each others in a rather surprisingly passionate way considering.

* * *

"So... where did you go?" asked the purple dragon, as the three continued their journey toward the dragon temple.

The three finally reached a clearing. The dragon temple was close by, now...

And just when Sparx was about to reply, he noticed a familiar figure and grinned, pointing at it. "Hey! Isn't that Ignitus over here?"

Spyro turned to the center of the clearing and saw it. The large frame of the fire Guardian. His mentor... and his father. Joy begun to rise within his young heart.

"Ignitus!" he called, running up to the elder dragon, Cynder and Sparx just behind him.

And then, the elder dragon smiled as well. Although it wasn't a large, radiant one, the fact that he had smiled at all was more than enough proof of just how happy he was.

He thanked the Ancestors... and her... for watching over him. Spyro had succeeded. He had returned safely. In a way, this made him so... so happy as well. Finally...

"So you have returned... you have succeeded." said the red dragon, watching the three.

"You bet! The Dark Master's history, now! And thanks to who? The mauve guy, she-dragon, and the awesomest of all classy dudes, Sparx! Yeah! We rock!" said proudly the dragonfly.

The Dark Master defeated... At long last, his reign of terror comes to an end. No longer shall anyone fear his power. However, as he looked at the three, he noticed that something was wrong.

"Spyro... where is Astrial?" asked the elder.

And then, at this moment, everyone became uneasy. Spyro frowned, looking down while Cynder looked away, as if hesitating. Even Sparx became suddenly very focused on his right hand's fingers, whistling innocently for some reason...

His smile faded. His fears had been confirmed...

"So, he did not return..."

"No. I'm sorry," replied the purple dragon.

Ignitus closed his eyes, feeling the sorrow rise. He knew that Astrial was not his true son, much unlike Spyro. Astrial had been born out of divine intervention, an egg created from the power of the Ancestors touching the female he had loved. Still, even though Astrial had been taken away by the older, true Guardians, even if Astrial had turned so blind, even if he had never even paid the slightest attention to him, he loved him as a father would have. Astrial had been his son nevertheless and even though he knew that such a thing would happen, that one of them would ultimately perish, it did little to lessen the pain...

"Ignitus?" called the male hatchling, noticing the larger dragon's expression.

The elder opened his eyes anew and stared at Spyro for a moment before replying. "Do not worry young dragon. It's nothing..."

Spyro looked down anew, closing his eyes. No, that was not okay. Astrial was his brother and thus, by extension, was also Ignitus's son. He opened his eyes anew...

"I know, Ignitus. I'm sad about him, too..." said the purple dragon.

The elder was startled. He was brought out of his almost zen-like state, staring intently at the younger male.

"Spyro?"

The purple dragon sat down before continuing. "I know, Ignitus. He was your son, isn't it? I miss him too. He was..." he slowly looked down. "...my brother. I'm sorry I couldn't save him."

And then, finally, he realized it.

"Yo-you know?"

The purple dragon nodded. "Yes... father."

Emotion gripped the elderly dragon when he finally heard the word. "Father"... he had thought he would never hear it. He had never dreamt that anyone would have ever called him that.

He couldn't keep it in anymore and slowly, tears begun to form.

"She... would have been proud of you..."

"Father? How was she? How was... mother?" asked the small hatchling.

The happiness and sorrow mixed into his heart. Such pain... yet such happiness. A sense of calm washed over him, the sweet memories flooding back into his aging mind. The tears stopped flowing as he remembered.

"She was... the sweetest dragoness one could have imagined. I had never dreamt I would have met such a female in all of my life time. She was gentle, caring, beautiful, and brave. She gave her life to protect the temple. She gave her life to protect us, all of us. I'm sure that she must be watching over all of us as we speak... and I am sure that wherever she might be, she is proud of you, Spyro..."

Slowly, the black dragoness approached the purple one. He turned to her for a moment as she nodded. Sparx smiled sadly as well. For once, he had no comments to say about it all...

There was silence once again. A moment of peace and emotion...

And then, the three other Guardians slowly arrived on the scene.

"Ha! Our hero's welcome!" stated high and loud Sparx, brought out of his serious, thoughtful state.

But then, Spyro begun to notice that something was... off. Volteer seemed depressed and sad wherever Cyril and Terrador had expressions of rage. Although Terrador's wasn't as evident as Cyril's, it was obvious that the both of them were seriously angered by something. But by what and why?

"So... that explains it," said the ice Guardian aloud, staring at Spyro intently.

"Yes, indeed. I can feel the power too. All of us do," added Terrador, staring everybit as intently.

The ice Guardian walked up to Spyro, stopping at Ignitus's side. His face... was terrible. He truly seemed terrifying, even.

"I should have known. A rotten egg, just like its father," he said, his tone becoming more and more hateful as he spoke.

"Still, I am surprised. I had not expected him to have that power, for him to gain the same aura... although weaker," added the earth dragon, disappointment mixed to his rage.

"Weaker or not, this is the same power as the Dark Master!" snapped Cyril before snorting. "Heck! His aura is identical! He could be the Dark Master possessing Spyro last we know!"

Sparx rose an eyebrow, visibly upset. THAT wasn't the welcome he had expected nor wanted! "Hey hey hey! What's the problem here? Spyro ain't the Dark Master!... and how do you know about the power, anyway?"

"We know. Spyro truly is the Imposter. We know that he has killed Astrial and broken the Prophecy... I saw it shortly after the metal structure in the sky exploded," explained Ignitus, looking down, almost trembling.

"So what? Astrial went nuts! He was going to destroy the world!" replied the dragonfly, distress rising in his voice. He hated where this was going! Hated it!

"Astrial was guided by the very Ancestors! It is not up to us to question his will nor the Ancestors'! You fools have gone against the will of the Ancestors! Because of you, the Final Prophecy was prevented!" snapped back Cyril.

"The Final Prophecy was meant to prevent the rise of darkness. There is no future for a world of darkness, only suffering. It would have been better if everything had been destroyed than face the wrath of darkness," added Terrador.

"Man! I can't believe this!" yelled the dragonfly, throwing his arms up before turning to Ignitus. "Come on! Say something!"

The red dragon shook his head, his frown widening. "I... I can't..."

"What? You CAN'T? Geez!" Sparx couldn't believe this! After all they did...

Spyro slowly looked up to the Guardians, sadness all over his face...

"And now... what's going to happen?" he asked hesitantly, not wishing to hear the answer deep down. He suspected what it was and he didn't want it to come true. He truly didn't...

"We must defend the ways of the Ancestors!" claimed high and loud Cyril.

Terrador slowly nodded. "Yes... there is nothing left for us to do now, no hope left. All we can do is go down fighting the enemies of the Ancestors."

Slowly, the Guardians begun to move, surrounding the three...

"You truly aren't going to..." began Cynder, not finishing her sentence, not believing it either.

"Spyro... I'm so sorry..." said sadly Ignitus.

Spyro stared at the four. He couldn't believe this...

As the Guardians approached them, tightening the circle, Cynder and Spyro eventually collided into each others. They couldn't step back anymore and they were surrounded. There was no other choice...

"Spyro... what do we do?!?" asked the dragonfly, panicked.

Spyro stared at Ignitus. Such sadness in his eyes. His father... and now this...

But then, slowly, it came. In the distance, the shades of orange slowly turning to yellow. The first rays of sunshine. Dawn has come...

The dawn of a new day and the dawn of a new age...

As hard as it was... he had to carry on.

"You are wrong. It's false that there is nothing left," he said to the Guardians.

"Bah! What do you know? There's no future left, no hope!" snapped back Cyril.

Spyro paused a moment...

"You are wrong. I have a reason to live. We have a reason to live. We have hope now. We have a future now. We shall fight... to defend this future. The dawn of a new age has come."

He then turned to his friends. As hard as it was, there was no choice and thus, they had no choice but to agree and nod. Spyro turned to Ignitus. The red dragon... despite his deep sadness, there was a frown on his face...

"Ignitus..." whispered the hatchling.

"There is no regret to be had young dragon. My only regret is that I won't live to see the new age of dragons... now... DEFEND YOURSELF!"

The Guardians charged forward at this moment, Spyro and Cynder preparing to counter their first attack.

* * *

**THE END**


End file.
